Congress expresses concern over rising Dengue cases, demands daily bulletin
Hyderabad, Sept 9 (Maxim News) : Expressing serious concern over rising cases of Dengue in the twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad, the Congress party on Thursday demanded that the Telangana Government take measures on a war footing basis to prevent their spread.
Hyderabad City Congress Committee (HCCC) Minorities Department Chairman Sameer Waliullah said disturbing reports of a sharp spike in cases of Dengue were coming from all parts of the twin cities. “Besides Dengue, other vector-borne diseases like Malaria are also on the rise. Several localities in Hyderabad and Secunderabad are in the grip of viral fever and other seasonal diseases. The situation is highly alarming. The State Government must take immediate measures to deal with the situation,” he demanded.
Dengue Cases:
Sameer Waliullah said that a study reportedly conducted by the Health Department recently has revealed that the Dengue Mosquito Index in Hyderabad was 16, the highest in Telangana. This indicated that the dengue mosquito was present in every 16 out of 100 dwellings in Hyderabad. But another report of the Entomology wing of GHMC has revealed that the larvae of the Aedes aegypti mosquito which carries the Dengue virus have been found in every third house in certain areas. With the city receiving rainfall almost every day since the last one week and the prediction of more rainfall in coming days, the situation is likely to prove disastrous if immediate measures are not taken, he said.
The Congress leader alleged that the GHMC’s Monsoon Action was erratic and ineffective which led to the outbreak of Dengue, Malaria and other diseases. He said that the GHMC has failed to identify the Dengue/Malaria prone areas and did not take up anti-larval operations in a proper manner. “If all cases reported in private and government hospitals in the last one week are taken into account, nearly 80,000 to 1 lakh people in Hyderabad are affected with Dengue, Malaria, viral fever and other diseases. Unfortunately, a sizable number of patients are small children,” he said, adding that the GHMC did not cover even half of nearly 25 lakh households for anti-larval operations.
Sameer Waliullah urged the State Government to start a daily media bulletin giving statistics of Dengue, Malaria cases and other diseases along with the localities. He said that the media bulletin would create awareness among people and they could take extra precautions if they are living in vulnerable areas.
Further, the Congress leader demanded that the State Government fix the cost for treatment of Dengue and Malaria in private hospitals. He said several corporate hospitals have robbed patients in the past, especially for the treatment of Dengue. He also demanded that special measures be taken to arrange blood platelets for those affected with the Dengue cases. He said there has been a sharp decline in blood donations due to Covid pandemic and the Blood Banks were facing a huge shortage of both donors and blood units. Therefore, the State Government should create a mechanism on an immediate basis to ensure timely supply of blood platelets to needy patients.
Sameer Waliullah informed that the HCCC Minorities Dept will shortly organize a three-day health camp at a massive scale in different parts of the city to conduct medical tests and supply medicines at free of cost. (Maxim News)
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