Closed doors, deserted roads as dengue stalks Ladugaon
Ladugaon, a busy business centre of Kalahandi district, wears a deserted look. With little respite from dengue from last fortnight, people are choosing to remain indoors. Business establishments are c
Published: 25th August 2018 04:55 AM | Last Updated: 25th August 2018 04:55 AM | A+A A-
A market in Ladugaon wears a deserted look | Express
BHAWANIPATNA: Ladugaon, a busy business centre of Kalahandi district, wears a deserted look. With little respite from dengue from last fortnight, people are choosing to remain indoors. Business establishments are closed and the weekly ‘haat’ has not been organised in Ladugaon for the last two weeks as farmers are refusing to come to the village with their produce.
According to official reports, the district has reported 125 dengue positive cases in the last 15 days of which, 116 are from Ladugaon village. While eight patients from Ladugaon are undergoing treatment at the special dengue ward at Bhawanipatna District Headquarters Hospital, the rest have been admitted to Ladugaon Primary Health Centre, SCB MCH at Cuttack, VSS MCH at Burla and private hospitals in Visakhapatnam.
The condition of patients in the special dengue ward is stable. Sources said 14 people are suffering from fever in Ladugaon. Ladugaon is home to 12,000 families and is the biggest village in Kalahandi district. It has a large workforce due to presence of six rice mills, busy markets and business establishments.
Additional District Public Health Officer (vector-borne diseases), Dr Jyotish Kumar Mohapatra said the Health department is creating awareness among people about the disease. Steps are being taken to stop breeding of Aedes mosquito and there is regular testing of blood samples in the special dengue ward at Bhawanipatna DHH. Regular spraying and fogging is being done to kill mosquito larva.He said both the species of Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus, which are responsible for dengue, are found in Ladugaon.
Mohapatra said besides Ladugaon, fresh cases of dengue have been reported from nearby villages under Jaipatna and Koksara blocks. “As the infective stage of dengue fever is around 12 days, patients have been advised to remain indoors,” he said, adding that the intensity of dengue has come down.
Dengue is transmitted by the bite of the Aedes mosquito that typically attacks during daytime. Its favourite spots are below the elbow and below the knee. In Jaipatna block, Talpadar, Utchla, Khairmal, Nuaguda villages and Ainli, Olma, Koksara, Tungaon, Gatabandh villages under Koksara block, dengue cases have been reported.
