Monsoon delay may lead to dengue spike in Punjab

Vishav Bharti

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, September 24

After Covid, Punjab is heading towards a dengue outbreak. So far, 1,900 cases of dengue have been reported in the state, which is almost double than the cases reported last year till the third week of September.

As per the data compiled by state’s Health Department, so far 1,942 confirmed cases of dengue have been reported this year. Almost 20 per cent of the cases have been reported from Hoshiarpur district alone. The other worst-affected districts include Amritsar with 384 cases, Muktsar with 285, Bathinda with 237, SAS Nagar with 178 and Pathankot with 168 cases so far.

Experts say the prolonged monsoon can further make the situation worse as it will provide a conducive atmosphere to mosquitoes for breeding. Last year, the state had reported 8,435 cases and 22 deaths.

Dr Andesh Kang, Director, Health Services, said this year, the department had made elaborate arrangements with increasing the testing three fold. “We have 39 designated labs for testing vector-borne diseases and so far, the department has conducted 8,700 tests,” she said.

Dr Gagandeep Grover, state’s nodal officer for dengue, said the way mosquito breeding was being found in houses, the number may easily cross the figure of last year.