Centre seeks report on dengue, chikungunya from Delhi govt

The Centre on Friday sought a detailed report from Delhi government on deaths due to dengue and chikungunya, including medical history of the deceased, in the national capital where vector-borne diseases have claimed at least 30 lives and affected nearly 3,000 people.

Earlier in the day, Health Minister JP Nadda also met Delhi Health Minister Satyendra Jain to discuss the situation and assured all support to the city government even as he asserted that no patient is being turned away without treatment and there is no shortage of doctors and drugs. The Union Minister also assured support to the Haryana and Uttar Pradesh governments for tackling the vector-borne diseases.

"We have asked for a detailed report on the deaths taking place due to the vector-borne diseases in the city. Also, we have sought medical history of the deceased patients, whether they had any co-morbid conditions," Nadda said on the sidelines of a symposium held here on liver transplantation.

Chikungunya and dengue have wreaked havoc in Delhi with the death toll from the two vector-borne diseases climbing to 30 even as the number of affected people has crossed 2,800.

"Many of the patients diagnosed in Delhi are coming from NCR region and so fever clinics could also be set up there. We are resolving this matter with Haryana and other governments in the NCR. I have spoken to Haryana government (and UP) on this and our officers are working on it and in touch with them," he said.

Nadda said adequate numbers of fever clinics are also operating in the central government hospitals for treating the upsurge of patients. "Have assured all support to the Delhi government and the governments of Uttar Pradesh and Haryana for tackling the rising cases of dengue and chikungunya," Nadda said.

Seven of the 12 chikungunya victims belonged to Uttar Pradesh, including two from Ghaziabad, and five from Delhi. The Health Minister during the meeting with Jain also assured that while they have adequate strength of beds in the central government hospitals, all measures will be taken to enhance them.

"No patient is being turned away without treatment in these hospitals. There is no shortage of doctors, paramedical staff, drugs, testing kits, labs etc, for treatment of the patients," Nadda said.

Underscoring the importance of maintaining hygiene and cleanliness, Nadda asked people to ensure that their environs are not collecting water which could be vector breeding grounds. He also stressed on the importance of community participation to prevent vector breeding.

In a report released on Friday, AIIMS had said of the total number of patients admitted there for chikungunya and dengue from September 1-13, 70% belonged to Uttar Pradesh, 10% to Bihar and the rest to Delhi.

"A total of 96 dengue patients were admitted to AIIMS, out of which 56 have been discharged and, out of 65 admitted for chikungunya, 62 have been discharged, while one has died," the report said.

AIIMS said the patient, who hailed from Muzaffarnagar, died earlier this month of multi-organ failure triggered by chikungunya complications.

Chikungunya is taking its toll in the national capital where the number of cases have climbed to over 1,700 this season and fever clinics are getting swamped with rush of patients. 75-year-old J D Madan died on Thursday at the Sir Ganga Ram Hospital (SGRH), the fifth person to have lost life to complications triggered by chikungunya, at the hospital in last five days.

"The patient, a resident of Kalkaji, was admitted on August 12 night with complaints of fever and chills along with swelling and rashes on body. He was also a patient of chronic myeloid monocytic leukemia.
The hospital has admitted 100 patients till today this season, who have tested positive for chikungunya and 39 tested positive for dengue, SGRH said.

Five deaths from chikungunya complications were reported till yesterday at Apollo Hospital here, most of the victims were aged 80 or above. Doctors say that chikungunya is not a life-threatening disease in general but in rare cases leads to complications that prove fatal, especially in children and old persons.

Meanwhile, AIIMS laboratories have tested 1,443 chikungunya blood test samples positive till September 13. At the Centre-run Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital, 425 chikungunya cases have been reported this season while 112 have been diagnosed with dengue.

"About 60 people are currently admitted in RML. Also, we have dedicated 110 beds especially for chikungunya and dengue patients," a hospital spokesperson.

At Safdarjung Hospital, also Centre-run, 536 chikungunya cases and 342 dengue cases have been confirmed this season.