INDIA, OCTOBER 8: The Madhya Pradesh government, which claims the state has so far been spared a dengue outbreak, has suddenly woken up and is readying for battle with a thousand rapid diagnostic kits.
The kits are to arrive from Goa in a couple of days and will be
provided to all government medical colleges and district hospitals.
On Saturday a high-level meeting of health officials was held in the
wake of reports that suspected dengue cases were reported from private
hospitals.
The government had been similarly casual about the
chikungunya outbreak. Some 52,000 cases of chikungunya have been
reported in the state.
Cases were first reported from Betul district.
The worst-affected Betul, Balaghat, and Chhindwara districts all share
boundaries with Maharashtra.
Joint Director (Health) Dr A N Mittal claims the outbreak is under
check, and that no chikungunya case had been reported from those
districts in the last few days.
Officials also claimed that, although
neighbouring Rajasthan had been affected by dengue, Madhya Pradesh had
so far been spared.
However, private hospitals have reported few dengue cases.
One dengue
death has been reported from a private hospital. Dr P K Pande of
National Hospital said a woman from Beena district died a couple of
days ago and tests confirmed that she died of dengue.
He said his
hospital was treating one more dengue patient.
Dr Mittal, however, contended the hospital's claim.
The patient from
Beena was suffering from paralysis and had been admitted to hospital
several days ago.
The death could not be attributed to dengue because
she was afflicted with several diseases, he stated.
Yet another private hospital in the old city has also reported a dengue
death. Health department officials, however, claimed they were not
aware of the deaths. A top health official contested the claims of the
private hospitals, saying it was not possible to come to a conclusion
before detailed test reports.
The government claimed that it was prepared to meet the dengue
challenge because it had already started taking precautionary measures
after the outbreak of chikungunya.
Since mosquitoes spread both the
diseases, sanitation drives launched earlier will prevent the spread of
dengue, a health official claimed.
KOLKATA: After last year's dengue outbreak in the city, experts had
recommended a ban on anti-mosquito fogging, saying it is a futile
exercise and a waste of public money. However, a year later, the
Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) is in no mood to pay heed to the
experts' opinion -- more due to its visual impact than any other
reason.
Besides, it's a money spinner, too, for some. KMC's health
officials are continuing with fogging, utilising chemicals that are not
merely ineffective in killing the mosquito, but are "detrimental" to
the environment too.
Kota: An eight-year-old girl died of dengue while a one-year-old is
being treated for the disease in a hospital here, chief medical and
health officer Dr NK Jhalani of the JK Lone Hospital said.
Mobile units
are moving around Kota city and rural areas to diagnose and treat
patients at the doorstep.
Dharamsala: The first case of dengue in Himachal Pradesh has been
reported from Nagrota Suriyan in Kangra district, 28 km from here.
The
patient, who works in a private company in Delhi, was running a mild
fever when he came to Nagrota on October 2. ENS/PTI
India Express
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