Malaria cases double in Ahmedabad in 2012

Mosquitoes are back with their menace in Ahmedabad as number of patients suffering from the disease has doubled this year. The city has reported 630 cases of the disease in January-March 2012, up from 300 during same time last year.

Civic body officials attribute this increase to re-occurrence of the disease and increase in areas under their surveillance.

However, there is hardly any difference in number of Plasmodium Falciparum (PF) but there is almost a 100% increase in cases of Plasmodium Vivax (PV) strain of malaria.

According to IK Patel, deputy municipal commissioner, AMC health department, re-occurrence of malaria in the last couple of months of 2011 is the reason for a surge in number of cases reported in January-March, 2012. "We have asked health officials to submit exact data of re-occurrence so that necessary action can be taken," said Patel.

Meanwhile, Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) has chalked out an action plan to combat the increased incidences of PV malaria in the city. Around 500 people have been recruited by the civic body to conduct door-to-door survey to get a definite number of malaria cases in the city. This will increase area under surveillance of AMC from 40% to almost 100%.  

There will also be a substantial increase in number of patients screened from the current 30% after this surveillance, said sources in AMC's health department.

Apart from the vector-borne disease, a large number of people in the city are suffering from gastroenteritis, jaundice, typhoid, dengue and cholera. However, there is 50% reduction in number of these cases compared to last year.