The coastal district of Balasore has topped the list of number of dengue cases reported in the State. Worse, such cases are on the rise despite remedial measures.
According to official reports, with 14 fresh cases, the number of patients increased to 438 in Balasore. Ganjam stood second reporting 414 cases.
So far, though four persons have allegedly succumbed to the vector-borne disease, the administration denied any dengue death.
Prevalence rate of dengue this year is far more intense compared to last year. While at least 22 panchayats in Bhogarai block are in the grip of dengue, Nimatpur village has been the worst hit with at least 50 positive cases.
The vector-borne disease also has been reported from Baliapal, Bahanaga and Nilagiri blocks.
Sources said while one Sukanta Sala (28) of Badapatapur in Nilagir block died of dengue in a private hospital in Bhubaneswar, Basanti Jena (60) from Chhotadaudpur village of Bhogarai succumbed at her home last week.
Earlier, two persons from Bhogarai had reportedly died of the vector-borne disease.
Locals alleged that they were forced to admit the patients in nearby hospitals at Digha and Kanthi in West Bengal while others who could afford have shifted their patients to SCB Medical, Cuttack, or private hospitals in Bhubaneswar.
District Malaria Officer (DMO) Deepak Dasmohapatra said the disease has no particular medicine.
“The patients are being treated with only paracetamol. We have taken all preventive measures so that the disease won’t spread further. We have been able to curb the prevalence rate,” he said, adding that they have no information about the district topping the list of positive cases.
Meanwhile, the health officials have intensified fever surveillance and door-to-door interaction with people. Experts have blamed the rise in dengue cases to the fickle weather, the extended monsoon resulting in intermittent rain and stagnant pools of water.
CDMO Benu Madhab Mishra said dengue patients were being treated free of cost. “We are taking all possible measures to check the outbreak. Trained volunteers are making people aware of the disease in the dengue-affected areas. We are focusing on source reduction and conducting fogging exercises regularly to eradicate mosquito breeding,” he added.