CUTTACK: Amid coronavirus scare, resurfacing of dengue menace before the onset of monsoon has worried the city residents. A 55-year-old woman of Tulasipur area has been tested positive for dengue at SCB Medical College and Hospital two days back. Similarly, a woman who had undergone surgery in Obstetrics and Gynaecology department at SCBMCH has been kept under isolation after she was tested positive for dengue few days back. According to official sources, 20 dengue cases have been identified during the last three months in the district.
The menace of the vector-borne disease has been growing for the last few years. As per official records, 4,518 dengue cases have been reported in the last four years in the district of which seven have resulted in death. The city had alone reported 980 cases in 2018. Jagatpur, Jobra Tina Pita Sahi, Rausapatana and SCB Medical Campus were identified as hotspots where massive numbers of dengue cases were reported.
Last year, dengue cases were reported from Darghapatna and Nuapada, Kathagada Sahi localities in December. The unseasonal rain continuing from April is said to have resulted in waterlogging and creating favourable conditions for spurt in dengue cases before the onset of monsoon. Municipal Commissioner Ananya Das, however, fringed ignorance about dengue cases in the city.