An outbreak is reported at the start of the monsoon season. Three doctors in the Firozabad district are suspended for negligence. Local authorities plan to send health workers door-to-door and spray anti-larva liquid.
New Delhi (AsiaNews/Agencies) – On the eve of the monsoon season, the districts of Firozabad, Mathura, Etah and Mainpuri (Uttar Pradesh) have been hit by a deadly dengue outbreak, taking an especially heavy toll among children.
In Firozabad alone 67 people have died so far. The local administration suspended three doctors, including the district chief medical officer, for negligence.
A team of health experts from the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) was rushed to Firozabad to collect larvae (which transmit the disease) from the affected area to find out the variant causing the outbreak.
In Mathura district, the residents of some villages organised a hunger strike after a child died of dengue. Since yesterday the area has reported 11 dead. Local residents broke their fast only after Karinda Singh, a Member of the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly, persuaded them to stop.
In response to the outbreak, the State government announced plans to sends health workers door-to-door to identify people with dengue rather than COVID-19, starting next Tuesday until September 16.
In urban or rural places where dengue is found, anti-larva spraying will follow.