Punjab in dengue grip; cases to peak by mid-October: Experts

Vishav Bharti

Chandigarh, August 29

The state is in the grip of dengue with 800 cases already having been reported so far this year. The number is almost double the cases reported till the end of August last year.

As per the data of the Health Department, the state has tested 15,807 samples for suspected dengue of which 801 had been found positive. Last year, by the end of August, the state had reported around 400 cases. So far, two persons have succumbed to the vector-borne disease.

In the district-wise break up of cases, Fatehgarh Sahib is the worst affected with 125 cases, followed by Ferozepur (123), SAS Nagar (88) and SBS Nagar (87).

Experts say the cases may suddenly increase in September and by mid-October, these are likely to hit the peak. Dr Ranjit Singh Ghotra, Director, Health Services, Punjab, said the number of cases this year was certainly more than the previous year. “We generally start getting dengue cases in August, but this year, we had cases even in March,” he said.

However, the response of the government is lethargic as the last meeting of the State Task Force of 11 departments on dengue was called in May. Since then, not even a single meeting has been called. Dr Ghotra said they had started the process to call the meeting and it would be held soon.

In the past two years, due to the Covid outbreak, the health infrastructure of the state has expanded massively. The dengue test is done in all government hospitals free of cost and kits needed for testing have been made available in all such hospitals. The number of dengue tests being done since last year is around three times the last decade’s average.

Symptoms

The symptoms of the disease include high grade fever above 102°F, headache, pain in eyes, general body pains, vomiting, skin rashes, which must be monitored for seven to 10 days by medical experts.

What precautions you need to take

• Always keep overhead water tanks properly covered
• Drain out water from coolers and scrub these dry once a week
• In case of fever, get your blood examined at the earliest
• Wear full-sleeve clothes and take full treatment if infected

Don’ts

• Do not allow water to stagnate in and around your house
• Do not throw discarded containers, tyres, pitchers and pots on the rooftop