Bhubaneswar, Nov. 21 -- Three children from Shalabani village under Mahisapatta panchayat in Nilagiri block of Balasore district were hospitalised after accidentally consuming Thimet, a highly toxic agricultural insecticide, mistaking it for salt while playing on Thursday.

According to local sources, the children identified as Yuvraj Singh (8), son of Babula Singh; Indurekha Singh (5), daughter of Akshay Singh; and Ghanashyam Singh (4), son of Ramesh Singh, were engaged in the traditional mud-kitchen game using coconut shells on Thursday afternoon.

While preparing make-believe meals, they placed soil in coconut shells and attempted to imitate real cooking. During the process, one of the children reportedly fetched Thimet from a house, a...