Ghaziabad: Loni’s Mewla Bhatti a hotbed for viral fever, dengue cases

According to officials, the village, at least 20km from Ghaziabad, has 426 houses and a population of as many as 1,500

At least seven cases of dengue and 60 cases of viral fever were reported from Mewla Bhatti in Ghaziabad’s Loni in the past four days, officials of the district health department said on Wednesday, while residents of the area said a significant number of people here is affected by the infections for more than a fortnight.

The Sanjay Nagar Combined District Hospital’s dengue ward in Ghaziabad on Wednesday. (Sakib Ali/HT Photo)

According to officials, the village, at least 20km from Ghaziabad, has 426 houses and a population of as many as 1,500. Every day, approximately 35 patients visit the camps set up by the health department to test for infectious diseases.

According to the residents, many people have a fever and seek treatment at various government and private healthcare facilities.

“My 15-year-old daughter and 25-year-old brother are being treated in the dengue ward of the government’s Sanjay Nagar combined district hospital. Almost every house in our village has someone who has had a fever for the past 10-15 days. Government teams conducted tests, and 11 people are currently admitted to the dengue ward. My 12-year-old son also got a fever last week, but he has recovered,” said Arvind Kumar, a resident.

Officials said a team of 70 cleaning staff had been deployed at Mewla, and people are being urged to drain water from their air coolers.

Aman, a patient at the Sanjay Nagar hospital’s dengue ward, said, “I’ve been here since Tuesday, and a team of government doctors performed my test. Hundreds of people have suffered from fever and related complications in the last month. Those who tested positive were hospitalised. Many residents are treated in Loni, while others are treated in private hospitals.”

Dr Vinod Pandey, the hospital’s chief medical superintendent, said, “The 11 patients admitted here were sent to us as dengue cases.”

In contrast to his claims, district surveillance officer Dr Rakesh Gupta said that the 11 patients in Sanjay Nagar hospital’s dengue ward tested negative for dengue.

According to Dr Gupta, seven dengue-positive cases have been reported in Mewla Bhatti in the last four days, with an additional 60-70 cases of viral fever.

“Currently, the estimated viral fever cases in Ghaziabad is around 500. We had 59 dengue-positive cases in Ghaziabad as of Tuesday evening, with seven of them confirmed in Mewla Bhatti. As many as 60 cases of viral fever have been reported here in the last four-five days, and we have sent teams to set up camps and test suspected cases. Those who wish to be admitted are,” said Dr Gupta.

The 59 dengue-positive cases reported up to Tuesday include a 21-year-old man who died on August 1 at a private hospital due to multi-organ failure after testing positive for dengue. Officials said that he had dengue shock syndrome.

Official figures show that there were 901 dengue cases in 2022, 1,238 dengue cases in 2021, 15 cases in 2020, 88 in 2019 and 68 in 2018.