3 dengue cases in Siliguri

TT; Siliguri, Sept. 3: Three confirmed cases of dengue have been reported from the town in the past couple of weeks, health officials said today. “There have been three confirmed cases of dengue in Siliguri after MAC-ELISA tests.

 The patients are under medication,” Siliguri additional chief medical officer of health, Tulsi Pramanik, said. The cases have prompted the civic body to launch awareness drives and take steps to control the breeding of mosquitoes. The district health department is also conducting a fever survey and a door-to-door campaign. 

 “We have learnt that three patients have been infected with dengue. They are under treatment. There have been no new cases in the past two-three days,” Maitrayee Chakraborty, the member mayor-in-council (health) of Siliguri Municipal Corporation, said.

 “We have initiated an awareness drive by distributing pamphlets and giving advertisements in the local cable channels. Our staff members have been asked to distribute bleaching powder and chemicals in town to control the breeding of mosquitoes.

 We have requested all private nursing homes and clinics to inform us in case any confirmatory test results are positive,” she added. SMC sources said 50kg of bleaching powder had been sent to each ward in the SMC and 30 litres of chemicals had been given to each of the five borough offices across town. “So far 10,000 leaflets have been distributed. Another 10,000 would be distributed tomorrow. Fog machines have been deployed to spray chemicals in town,” said a source.