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Tricity in dengue grip again, Panchkula worst-affected
Data shared by UT health department confirms 129 cases of dengue so far, including nine cases on Tuesday. In Mohali, total 229 cases have been reported, of which 18 tested positive today. The district has witnessed one death.
Dengue has started taking a toll on the health of tricity residents, with cases shooting up in September. So far this, 668 dengue infections and two deaths have been reported from the three jurisdictions, of which nearly half are from Panchkula. A major chunk of these cases have surfaced in the first 13 days of September.
Data shared by UT health department confirms 129 cases of dengue so far, including nine cases on Tuesday. In Mohali, total 229 cases have been reported, of which 18 tested positive today. The district has witnessed one death.
Panchkula has reported 330 cases -- the maximum in the tricity -- and a death. On Tuesday, 12 persons were admitted to hospitals and 26 new cases were reported in the district.
Sudden spike in September
Data shared by the Panchkula health department shows 202 new cases in the last 13 days, as the count of dengue here was 128 till August 31.
The worst impacted areas are Kalka and Pinjore, from where over 80% cases are being reported. Out of 330, 261 cases have been reported from these two areas (see box)
The health department also stated that the vector-borne disease (VBD) team visited 2,460 houses on Tuesday and collected 165 samples. So far, 1.3 lakh houses have been inspected by the teams and 3,369 samples have been collected.
New dengue wards have been established in SDH Kalka and Urban Poly Clinic, Pinjore. Six health teams have been constituted at Kheda Sita Ram, which is the worst-affected area of Kalka.
Chief medical officer (CMO) Mukta Kumar said that a new testing lab has been set up in Kalka, wherein samples are being tested from 8am to 8pm. Additional staff has also been sent.
Erratic water-supply reason one of the causes
CMO Kumar further said: “The main reason why Kheda Sita Ram is affected badly is due to the erratic water supply in the area. People complain of shortage of water supply because of which they store water for weeks. Open containers filled with water are a common sight here and this is the reason behind the spread of dengue.”
She said most residents here are labourers who work in factories in Parwanoo.
The teams have asked them to at least change utensils within a week or filter water every week, but they have any time. They leave early morning and reach late night.
The doctor said that she had requested Panchkula municipal corporation several times to supply water daily to this area, so that people don’t have to store water. “But till date, there is no improvement on ground,” Dr Mukta said.
Clogged drains are another reason.
