BERHAMPUR: With the death of a 11-year-old boy, the malaria toll in Rayagada district went up to two.
The boy was admitted to district headquarters hospital on July 16 and died on the way to MKCG medical college and hospital the next day. He was a student of Class VI of Badaraising Sevashram. On Tuesday, a Class IV girl student of Durgapadu Sevashram had perished. District health office sources said the girl died while undergoing treatment at Kashipur hospital.
Malaria has spread its tentacles in all blocks of the district in the last fortnight. Sources said till date, over 500 people including school students have been affected.
Rayagada is prone to malaria and reports the maximum number of cases among districts in the state. As per district health sources,this year from January to June, 3,712 persons including 449 children tested positive for the disease. In 2023, from January to June, 3,196 people had been affected. Sources said as per data collated from 11 community health centres (CHCs) in the district, 56,991 people were tested for malaria in June of which 1,204 came positive.
While the highest 546 were diagnosed with malaria in Chandrapur CHC, 449 were affected in Gudari and 434 in Kashipur.