West Bengal: Bidhannagar logs 245 dengue cases in a week

KOLKATA: The highest one-week spike in dengue cases was recorded in Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation (BMC) area since 2017 on Thursday with 245 cases being reported last week. The figure surpassed the total 238 dengue cases that were recorded in BMC area for an entire year in 2020.
There has been a five-fold increase in the number of dengue cases in the last one month. In August, about 185 dengue cases were reported, whereas 366 cases have already been reported in first two weeks of September with numbers only expected to increase. In the previous three corresponding weeks, a total of 121, 77 and 44 cases, respectively, were reported from BMC area.
“Number of dengue cases were fewer in the last two years when Covid was rampant. The last time when over 300 weekly cases were getting reported was in 2017. In 2019, 457 dengue cases were reported in October and another 438 cases were reported in November. Going by the present trend, we fear that the figures will be surpassed this year in this month itself,” said an official.
Most cases are getting reported from areas adjacent to Kestopur canal on the Salt Lake side and in pockets of wards 29, 31, 40, 41 and off Bagjola canal on Rajarhat and in pockets of Baguiati, Kaikhali and adjoining areas. No dengue death has been reported from BMC area till date.
The civic authorities have kept 20 beds ready at each of its three Matri Sadan hospitals, one in Salt Lake EE block and the other two in Deshbandhunagar and Narayanpur at Rajarhat Gopalpur end for dengue patients to get admitted on emergency basis.
Authorities are conducting fever camps in several wards where people have fever and dengue like symptoms. A helpline (6292234126) has also been introduced for people to inform the civic authorities about new dengue case or stagnant water accumulation in any locality across BMC.