Kolkata, Oct. 5 -- Two people have died of dengue in the past three days, both from South 24-Parganas. All district administrations have been asked to remain on alert until February next year.
According to sources, around 9,600 people across the state have been affected with dengue from January 1 to September 30 this year. The figure is much lower than 13,000 people who were affected with the disease last year. This year, the highest number of cases were reported in Murshidabad district. Around 1,632 patients were affected with dengue in Murshidabad. Kolkata comes second as it reported 808 cases followed by North 24-Parganas with 637 cases and South 24-Parganas 585, Nadia 583 and Hooghly 502.
In 2024, dengue serotype 3 was dominant, while serotype 2 emerged as a major concern last year. This year, both serotypes have been causing concern from the beginning. Experts say frequent changes in weather patterns may be contributing to the rise in dengue cases.
There are four dengue serotypes-Den-1, Den-2, Den-3 and Den-4. The risk is less if a patient is infected with the first and third but the second and fourth species are very deadly. ICMR said that all four species have spread simultaneously in some states of the country. The state government has strengthened the anti-dengue drive in pockets which have recently reported dengue cases. About 12 dengue hotspots have been identified across the state where the maximum number of dengue cases were found.
All the District Inspectors of Schools have been urged to make sure that schools conduct anti-dengue campaigns. The state government has already approved Rs 1.2 crore for dengue-related campaigns. In the wake of a recent spike in dengue cases, a meeting on stock-taking and dengue-control measures was held. It was attended by the Chief Secretary and representatives from 16 departments, including health, civic bodies and police.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.