Adimali: One-year-old twin boys died after they accidentally touched insecticide that had leaked onto the kitchen floor and licked their hands at their rented house in Irumbupalam near Adimali on Friday.

The children, Ihan and Rihan, were the sons of Afsal and Sandra of Valiyakattil House, Ozhuvathadam, Mannamkandam, Adimali. Their three-year-old elder brother was also at home when the incident occurred around 7.30 pm.

"The family had moved into the house about two months ago. A 200-ml aluminium container of green-coloured liquid insecticide, an Ekalux product used to kill termites, was kept in a kitchen cupboard. The previous tenants might have left it behind. The thin aluminium container had corroded, causing the liquid to leak onto the floor," said an officer from the Adimali police station.

The parents never noticed the container earlier and also did not realise that the insecticide had leaked and spread across the floor on Friday night. They told police that a power cut that evening may have prevented them from noticing the spill immediately.

Police said the children came in contact with the liquid while crawling on the floor and may have licked their hands. Marks of their hands and feet were found on the floor, indicating that they had crawled in the area after coming in contact with the liquid.

The parents noticed the spill later and immediately washed the children and brushed their teeth. "As the boys initially showed no signs of illness, the family did not suspect a serious problem. However, when one of them became unwell, both were taken to MGM Hospital in Irumbupalam with the help of neighbours," the cop said.

Ihan died at MGM Hospital around 9 pm. Rihan was shifted to Morning Star Medical Centre in Adimali, where he died around 10.30 pm.

Police have cordoned off the house, and a forensic examination is underway. The bodies have been kept at the Government Taluk Hospital in Adimali and will be handed over to the family after postmortem.

Adimali police have registered a case under Section 194 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) in connection with the unnatural deaths and launched an investigation.

Afsal, a native of Adimali, is a daily-wage worker, while Sandra is originally from Thiruvananthapuram.