West Bengal Chief Secretary Hari Krishna Dwivedi As dengue cases are spreading fast — with more than 31,000 people being affected in the state this year so far — West Bengal Chief Secretary Hari Krishna Dwivedi on Saturday held a meeting with the district magistrates of all 23 districts to take stock of the dengue situation and directed them to take strict measures to control dengue situation.
Dwivedi directed the DMs to get regular surveys in domestic or semi-domestic areas done for waterlogging and accumulated water and to organise awareness campaigns to make people aware of the reasons for dengue spread.
During the meeting at Nabanna, the state health department gave a detailed presentation on the dengue situation
According to health department officials, North 24 Parganas district has the highest number of infections this year, with 5,901 people being diagnosed with the infection in the district so far. In 2019, more than 12,000 people were found infected with dengue in the district, they said.
According to officials, two blocks of North 24 Parganas — Rajarhat and Deganga — have the highest number of infections. Howrah district stands second with 3,866 dengue cases reported, so far, said officials. As many as 636 dengue cases were detected this week in the district.
With 3,406 dengue infections this year so far, Kolkata stands third, said officials. In a few wards in Kolkata, the rate of dengue infections has increased over the past week. For example, the dengue infection rate in Ward Number 109 was 154 per cent, they said.
A senior health official said, “Dengue control mainly depends on people’s awareness. Until and unless people are aware, the spread of dengue cannot be controlled.”