KOLKATA: Japanese encephalitis is assuming endemic proportions in north Bengal with 105 people dying in the past 20 days and the West Bengal government issuing a ‘red alert’. A team from the Pune Institute of Virology has reached the state to conduct on the spot examination and collect blood samples.
As many as 350 people with initial symptoms, including very high fever, have been admitted to several hospitals including the North Bengal Medical College and Hospitals in Siliguri.
The State Government has opened several ‘fever clinics’ to combat the situation. The disease leads to inflammation of the brain and affects the nervous system and is caused by mosquito bites.