KOLKATA: There have been 11 dengue deaths this season of people who didn't have any comorbidity, chief minister Mamata Banerjee told the Bengal assembly on Wednesday. The CM said six of these deaths took place in government hospitals, the rest in private facilities.
The CM said, "During puja, the positivity rate was the highest at nearly 13%. Most cases were from Kolkata, North 24 Parganas, Howrah Hooghly, Murshidabad and Siliguri. The cases have come down in last month, with the positivity rate now around 7%."
In the last two years, dengue cases were far fewer due to Covid, she said. "Cases spike after some years due to natural causes. These were fewer in the past two years, but spiked this year. It is natural that cases have increased. The dengue virus changes its gene. Dengue cases in the last two years were low, but it increased this year. However, it is now under control."
Banerjee said that earlier, around 1,100 to 1,200 daily cases were occurring. The daily count at present is around 500.
The CM said, "We have asked the health department to keep up regular monitoring, continue to operate the fever clinics, keep testing and platelet facilities open, and to keep ready mass awareness campaigns. The house-to-house survey and garbage cleaning work have to continue till the spread of dengue stops."
Compared to the previous month, there has been a slide in dengue cases, Banerjee said. "I have asked the departments to keep up the vigil and house-to-house surveys till the dengue cases completely subside," she said, adding, "Winter is arriving, and hopefully, the cases will reduce now."
"Dengue cases are being reported in other states too. But there is a Supreme Court ruling, for which the number of cases could not be uploaded in the online portal. The Centre, too, could not upload the cases in the portal," she said.