Nearly 79 children have died due to suspected Japanese encephalitis or brain fever in Gorakhpur district of eastern Uttar Pradesh and many more are undergoing treatment, a senior official said on Wednesday.

A total of 278 children have been admitted to the BRD Medical College here since July 31, of which 79 lost their lives and 130 were still being treated at the paediatrics ward of Nehru hospital, attached to the BRD college, Additional Director (Health) D P Misra said.

Some patients from Bihar and neighbouring Nepal were also admitted here, Misra said. He, however, did not comment on the earlier figure of 39 given by hospital officials.

Gorakhpur Commissioner Arvind Kumar visited the hospital on Wednesday and took stock of the situation.

Misra said there was no specific remedy for this fever and "only life-sustaining measures were being undertaken."

He said the blood serum samples were being sent to the National Institute of Infectious Diseases and to the Regional Laboratory Lucknow for examination, and only after their reports came in, could the Japanese encephalitis be confirmed. The tests may take a month.

Pigs are the main carriers of the encephalitis virus, which is transmitted to humans through mosquito bites. People have been advised to use mosquito nets and to take other measures to destroy the parasites.