An 18-month-old girl died after she choked on a plastic toy she swallowed accidentally. The incident took place in the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh.

According to local media reports, the toy came with a snack packet the family purchased in the Chinagudaba village in Vizianagaram. The child died Sunday, but the incident came to light Monday after the police registered a case. The deceased has been identified as Mounika.

Mounika’s mother Sandhyarani had purchased a snack packet Sunday evening, the Times of India reported. The newspaper said the girl was eating the snack when she found a small plastic toy inside.

The child tried to swallow it but the toy got stuck in her throat cavity. The girl was then rushed to a hospital where she was declared dead. Doctors removed the toy from the baby's body following an autopsy.

Local police said the small plastic toy found inside the snack packet was a freebie.

“We can’t blame anyone for the death of the girl. It was an unfortunate incident. A case under Section 174 of CrPC (suspicious death) was registered and the investigation is on,” he added.

The girl's family urged authorities to take action to stop such freebies from being put inside snack packets to avoid similar incidents in the future. Police also urged the public to be careful of what their child puts in their mouth.

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Representational image of baby feet. Getty Images/ Christopher Furlong
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