Five members of a family, including three children, were found dead at their home in Nagla Padam village in Greater Noida on Saturday morning, prompting a police, forensic and food-safety investigation into a suspected food poisoning incident.
The deceased were identified in the report as 37-year-old Mahesh, his wife Lalita, and their three children: 11-year-old Laddu, seven-year-old Mishti and three-year-old Sakshat. Police said the family had eaten noodles at about 10 pm before going to sleep. When they did not wake up in the morning, local residents became suspicious and found all five members dead on their beds.
The information was received at Rabupura police station on Saturday, following which local police personnel, senior officers, an ambulance and a Food and Safety Department team reached the village. A field unit and forensic team inspected the site and began collecting scientific evidence, according to the police account cited in the report.
The immediate cause of death has not been confirmed. The report said the family’s relatives and local residents told authorities that the five had eaten noodles during the night. Police described food poisoning as a preliminary possibility, but said the cause would be established through post-mortem reports and other investigations.
The deaths drew a crowd outside the house, while relatives gathered at the site. The bodies were sent for post-mortem examination. The investigation will need to establish whether the food consumed by the family was connected to the deaths and whether any other environmental or medical factor was involved.
The incident has also brought renewed attention to food-safety enforcement in the area. The report cited earlier cases in Rabupura, including a previous incident in which three people reportedly died after eating papaya taken from a refrigerator. It also said that between April and September this year, 247 of 483 food samples tested in the area were found to have deficiencies, meaning 51 per cent did not meet the required standards.
The highest level of failure was reported among paneer samples, with 90 of 104 samples described as failing. The report also mentioned deficiencies in spices, grains, milk, refined oil and khoya, with adulteration reportedly most common in milk-based products. The figures were presented as part of the wider food-safety context and do not establish the cause of the Greater Noida deaths.
Police and food-safety officials are continuing the investigation. The next formal findings are expected from the post-mortem examinations, forensic evidence and food-sample testing, which will determine the cause of death and any further action.
