Cholera has resurfaced in Rayagada district where at least five cases have been detected in Padampur block.
Alarmed by the situation, the Health department has sent a team to the district to monitor the situation.
The cases were found in four villages located close to the block headquarters. Contamination of the pipe water supply, which had leakages, is believed to have caused the outbreak.
A team, led by Joint Director (Public Health) Bikash Patnaik, is camping in the district to monitor the situation.
Rayagada had faced the scourge of cholera in the past. In 2010, at least 50 people had died of cholera though the State Government attributed it to diarrhoea and other gastro diseases. The Regional Medical Research Centre (RMRC) set up labs in both Rayagada and Kalahandi which bore the brunt of the outbreak.
Rayagada Chief District Medical Officer Anand Padhi, however, said the situation is under control. The villages have been sanitised and water sources disinfected, he added.
“We have started door-to-door screening in these villages besides creating awareness. There is no outbreak,” he added.
Recently, the State Government discussed a proposal for introducing cholera vaccination in Rayagada district after its successful piloting in Puri’s Satyabadi. However, the proposal has been put on hold.