Cholera outbreak in Mohali:Patient count reaches 46
Mohali deputy commissioner (DC) Aashika Jain said the administration is continuously monitoring cases of diarrhoea, cholera and dengue in the district and the situation is under control
With a deepening cholera outbreak in Kumbra village in Mohali, local administration on Wednesday also stationed health teams or Rapid response teams at the hotspots villages which got affected last year amid monsoon.
This comes a day after HT reported that water samples from around 100 government schools in Mohali failed quality test during a recent survey undertaken by the district administration.
The number of patients suffering from diarrhoea, cholera in Kumbra increased to 46 on Wednesday from 20 on Tuesday.
Mohali chief medical officer (CMO) Dr Davinder Kumar said 13 patients were admitted to the local civil hospital, while others were given on-site treatment.
District epidemiologist Dr Harmandeep Kaur said it is an outbreak as three patients turned out to be positive for cholera and are under observation at the local civil hospital in Phase-6. “Our teams have been stationed at Kumbra who are constantly keeping a check on these patients. The situation is under control so far,” Dr Kaur said.
Mohali deputy commissioner (DC) Aashika Jain said the administration is continuously monitoring cases of diarrhoea, cholera and dengue in the district and the situation is under control.
“15 rapid response teams are active in the district which have been mobilised for hot-spots, door-to-door surveys and spreading awareness in the affected areas,” the DC said.
However, additional deputy commissioner (ADC) rural development Sonam Chaudhary and ADC urban development Damanjit Singh Mann, while presiding over a review meeting at the District Administrative Complex, directed officials to pay special attention to the hot-spots where maximum cases were reported.
Ward number 18 Rauni Mohalla, Dera Bassi, Saini Nagar, Dhiremajara village, Madanpur, Mauli Baidwan, Azad Nagar, Adarsh Nagar in Balongi, Bar Majra, Sante Majra, Rambagh in Kharar, Shivjot Enclave in Kharar and Jujhar Nagar have been declared hot-spots.
“Government and private medical camps have been held at affected places including the hot spots. Along with this, the health department and the water supply and sanitation department are constantly collecting water samples,” ADC rural said.
The water supply at Kumbra village has been stopped and people are getting water through water tanks provided by municipal corporation, Mohali.
5-year-old dies in Kumbra village
Five-year-old Naina of Kumbra village died around 5 am on Tuesday at her residence.
While her father Manoj, who works as a painter, claimed that his daughter suffered from diarrhoea, had vomited thrice and also got an upset stomach following which she died early morning at her house; the doctors at civil hospital, Mohali refused any death due to the outbreak in the area.
“Our teams are stationed in Kumbra and no such patient came to us. Thus, no death due to cholera or diarrhoea has come to our knowledge. It could be a natural death,” Dr Harmandeep Kaur said.
However the deceased’s father said he was unable take his daughter for treatment. He added that his elder daughter Anjali was undergoing treatment at the civil hospital due to stomach infection.”
PSHRC takes suo motu cognisance of failed water samples
Punjab State Human Rights Commission (PSHRC) on Wednesday took a suo motu cognisance of the failed water samples in around 100 government schools in Mohali and has sought a report pertaining to the same from Mohali DC. A total of 538 water samples were collected from across Mohali, with special focus on hot spots such as a Jujhar Nagar, Bar Majra, Boothgarh and other villages near Gharuan from where water-borne diseases are regularly detected. Out of these, 243 samples, including 100 from government schools, were found unfit for consumption.