Rise in dengue cases in Kolkata and surrounding; three more deaths in two days

Three more deaths from dengue in the past two days in West Bengal has led to a heightened alert from the state administration.

The three deceased are Runu Biswas from Kolkata, Keya Goswami from Howrah and Krishnagopal Adhikari from Naihati. Biswas, a resident of Baguiati, was a constable in Amherst Street police station. She gave birth to a child a few days ago, and died on Wednesday.

Local people said that there are many people suffering from dengue in the area but the municipality hadn’t taken enough measures to prevent it from spreading. The Bagjola canal in the area has been dumped with garbage and plastics, is hardly cleaned thoroughly. Earlier last week, an official of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation died at Ruby General Hospital.

After the death of Keya Goswami of Howrah, local residents had a major spat with the local municipality workers who went to spray mosquito repellent in the area. The residents complained that the repellent is sprayed at a gap of seven to eight months instead of being sprayed regularly. The municipality workers denied this. Hers is the fourth death from dengue in Howrah this year. Over 1,500 dengue cases have been reported from Howrah this season.
Officially, over 24,000 persons have been affected with dengue in West Bengal this year so far, with 25 succumbing to death.

The state has sought the help of Kolkata-based National Atlas and Thematic Mapping Organisation (NATMO) for preparing a 3-D map of areas where incidences of dengue are high. This will help the civic bodies to spot areas which accumulate rainwater and are largely hidden from public sight, thus turning into a breeding ground for dengue. The map will take one year to prepare.

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