GUWAHATI: Thirty-six people have died of Japanese Encephalitis (JE) while 53 others lost their lives to Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES) in Assam since January. According to official sources, 15 of the state’s 33 districts have been affected by the disease.
“So far this year, 36 people have died while 140 positive cases of JE have been reported. During the same period, 53 people died and 554 positive cases of AES have been reported,” Dr. Umesh Phangso, State Programme Officer of National Vector-Borne Disease Control Programme, told this newspaper.
ALSO READ: Here's all you need to know about Japanese Encephalitis and how to prevent it
The deaths were reported from Jorhat, Dibrugarh, Karimganj, Kamrup (Metro), Kamrup (Rural), Barpeta, Nagaon, Darrang and Sonitpur districts.
Dr. Phangso said all measures had been taken to contain the outbreak. The measures include fogging and spreading of insecticides.
JE has claimed hundreds of lives in Assam over the past few years. According to official figures, 134 people had died of the disease in 2013, 165 in 2014, 135 in 2015, 92 in 2016, 87 in 2017 and 94 last year.