Diarrhoea outbreak in 2 Mohali villages: 45 hospitalised

Mohali civil surgeon Dr Mahesh Ahuja said water supply of Balongi had been temporarily discontinued in the wake of the outbreak.Water is now being supplied through water tankers

As many as 45 people have been hospitalised due to diarrhoea following an outbreak in Mohali’s Balongi and Badmajra villages over the past two days.

Water being supplied through tankers in Mohali’s Balongi village amid the diarrhoea outbreak. (HT)

Confirming this, civil surgeon Dr Mahesh Ahuja said water supply of Balongi had been temporarily discontinued in the wake of the outbreak.Water is now being supplied through water tankers. A mobile water testing lab has also been deployed to analyse samples on the spot.

The Mohali health department has set up medical camps in the villages and health teams are visiting houses to distribute oral rehydration solution (ORS) packets to affected families.

Deputy commissioner Aashika Jain said the water supply and health department teams collected water samples from seven villages, including Rurka, Bakarpur, Kurari, Kambala, Sohana, Balongi and Badmajra, on Sunday to protect residents from water-borne diseases.

She said the total number of patients hospitalised due to diarrhoea in the district was 65. Among them, 15 were admitted at Dera Bassi Sub-Division Hospital, 45 from Balongi and Badmajra at Mohali civil hospital and four at Community Health Centre, Kurali.

MC starts fogging to prevent vector-borne diseases

To prevent the outbreak of dengue and other vector-borne diseases following heavy rains last week, the Mohali municipal corporation and Greater Mohali Area Development Authority have launched fogging in their respective areas.

The other municipal councils of the district have also been doing regular fogging, besides destroying larvae in stagnant water.

Deputy commissioner Aashika Jain said health department teams were conducting medical camps across the district, particularly in flood-affected areas to protect people from water- and vector-borne diseases. Apart from this, regular chlorination is being done at all water supply sources.