The number of zika positive cases in Jaipur rose to 44 on Friday after ten more subjects were identified with the virus in reports received from the laboratory.
The medical and health department, however, claimed there was no reason for panic despite the increased patient count. Additional chief secretary, medical and health, Veenu Gupta, said that the 30 of the 42 patients are now healthy.
“We have collected samples of pregnant women in the third trimester over the last two days,” she said, adding, “79 women were screened for the symptoms reflective of the virus on Thursday and 152 were screened on Friday.” Almost all the women have been found to be healthy in the samples conducted so far, Gupta said.
Pregnant women are the most vulnerable to the virus that has taken both the doctors and the administration in Rajasthan by surprise. There has been no previously recorded case of zika ever in the state. The outbreak, therefore, put the emergency apparatus of the medical and health department to test.
Most cases pertaining to the spread of zika virus, including the first case, have been reported from the Shastri Nagar area of Jaipur.
Officials said that door-to-door collection of samples of pregnant women is underway in the affected areas. “The virus adversely affects the development of foetus inside the mother’s womb that can lead to retarded growth of the brain,” a doctor with the Sawai Man Singh Medical College said.
Central team continues to keep a vigil on the containment of the virus in Jaipur. The medical and health department officials are also taking measures to identify the areas where there are breeding grounds for mosquitoes. To prevent the people from storing water, the department has now decided to impose fine on the residents.
“Owners of such houses where larva of the mosquitoes is found, will have to bear monetary fine,” an official said. The measure has been introduced along with the awareness campaign for the people living in the affected areas.
Among other things, the department has installed television screens that are playing informative videos bout zika virus at strategic places. As a part of the plan, the department has provided fresh jingles to the Jaipur Municipal Corporation that it can play in loop in all the waste collection vans. At present, the swachhta jingle is played in all the vans engaged in door-to-door waste collection.
Containment Plan
- To prevent the people from storing water, the department has now decided to impose fine on the residents
- Owners of such houses where larva of the mosquitoes is found, will have to bear monetary fine
- Department has started collecting samples of pregnant women
- Govt officials said that 30 of the 42 positive subjects are now healthy.
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