Ghaziabad: 13 fresh dengue cases take tally to 288, 50% cases from city areas

Officials said of the total 288 dengue cases reported in the district so far, 208 patients required to be admitted to hospitals, taking the rate of hospitalisation to about 72.22%

Ghaziabad reported 13 fresh cases of dengue on Wednesday, taking the tally of total cases to 288, of which about 50% of the cases are from localities in the city while the trans-Hindon areas make up for 20%, said officials from the health department. The tally of malaria and scrub typhus stood at 15 and 39 respectively on Wednesday.

Blood samples being collected for dengue test at MMG Hospital in Ghaziabad on Wednesday. (Sakib Ali/HT photo)

Officials said of the total 288 dengue cases reported in the district so far, 208 patients required to be admitted to hospitals, taking the rate of hospitalisation to about 72.22%.

Officials of the district malaria department said city areas like Govindpuram, Harsaon, Pratap VIhar and Vijay Nagar among others were put under the ‘red zone’, indicating a high load of dengue cases.

“In this category, we have placed such localities from where dengue cases are being reported in clusters. The localities under the red zone make up for about 50% of the overall dengue cases reported so far. In the next category (orange zone), we have placed localities, such as Shastri Nagar and Mahendra Enclave, where cases are being reported but not in clusters. These account for about 30% of the overall dengue cases reported so far,” said G K Mishra, district malaria officer.

Mishra added trans-Hindon localities of Vaishali, Vasundhara, Indirapuram and Sahibabad fall under the ‘yellow zone’. “These localities do not have cases in clusters, but cases are sporadic. These account for about 20% of the dengue cases. We are mapping each and every dengue case on a map and have identified localities accordingly. Extensive anti-larvae and fogging drives have been taken up in high-risk areas,” said Mishra.

According to official figures, the total number of dengue cases was 621 in 2016, 232 in 2017, 68 in 2018, 88 in 2019 and 15 in 2020. The number of cases spiked in September this year, with Ghaziabad recording the first 100 cases on September 15 and the next 100 in nine days.