Two children have reportedly died of gastroenteritis while the flow of patients is rising at state-run and private hospitals in the district. Reports said one-year-old Qasim Ali of Ghakhar Mandi died at a private hospital in Daska on Sunday. His body was shifted to Ghakhar Mandi from Daska for burial. In Pasrur, six-year-old Khalid also died of gastroenteritis. Health department officials confirmed that 76 patients suffering from gastro were admitted to DHQ Hospital, Sialkot, and THQ hospitals in Daska and Pasrur. They said the number of gastro patients at government hospitals was rising while their figures were already high at private hospitals. Patients and their attendants have expressed dissatisfaction over the treatment facilities at government hospitals. They complained that there was an acute shortage of doctors, paramedical staff and medicines necessary for the gastro patients. They alleged that health department officials only tried to provide maximum treatment facilities to gastro patients in urban areas while those of the rural areas were always neglected. Meanwhile, doctors have advised the people to use boiled water to save themselves from gastroenteritis. Sialkot DCO Capt Atta Muhammad Khan (retired) said the health officials were directed to make preventive measures.