Kota: Amid rising cases of dengue and scrub typhus, the district administration in Rajasthan’s Kota has intensified efforts to check the spread of these infections following the death of an IIT-JEE aspirant from the mite-borne disease.
The IIT-JEE aspirant died of scrub typhus infection during treatment at a private hospital here on Friday evening, while six others were found infected with dengue and one with scrub typhus on the same day in the city.
District Collector OP Bunkar chaired a meeting here on Saturday afternoon that was attended by BJP’s Kota South MLA Sandeep Sharma, Chief Medical and Health Officer (CMHO) Dr Jagdish Soni and other medical officers.
The BJP MLA during the meeting expressed concern over the rising number of dengue and scrub typhus patients in the city and urged them to take immediate measures to check the same.
The arrangements at the hospitals were not adequate to treat the rising number of patients of dengue and scrub typhus, the MLA said and directed the officials to improve the facilities.
After the meeting, Sharma also directed that an awareness campaign should be launched among the people and coaching students to check the spread of the infection. The BJP workers would also drive the same campaign ward-wise, he said.
District Collector Issues Advisory:
Admitting that the number of dengue and scrub typhus patients were rising in the city, the district collector said an advisory was issued to the people, asking them to take measures to check the spread of the infection.
The CMHO on his part said at least 60 medical teams were, in view of the rising number of dengue and scrub typhus patients, sent to the fields to carry out preventive measures that included fogging in the areas, checking water tanks and coolers for larva etc.
Dr Soni said he also directed that a fine should be imposed after water is found accumulated in tanks, coolers in the hostels and houses and on acts leading to spread of the infection.
The CMHO added that intensive fogging by the medical teams was also underway in the hostels and coaching institutes.
Dr Soni further said 330 dengue cases have so far been detected through ELISA test in Kota since January this year while the number of those detected with scrub typhus stands at 73.
He added that dedicated dengue and scrub typhus 30-bed wards with medicated net covered over the patient’s bed were set in the New Medical College Hospital (NMCH), the MBS Hospital and in other attached hospitals of the city.
Identified as 19-year-old Sneha Bharti, the IIT JEE aspirant from Jharkhand’s Godda district was doing self study in a PG room in Talwandi area of Kota city after one year coaching at an institute here last year.
Bharti’s father Neelkhant, an officer in BSNL in Jharkhand, said he got her daughter admitted to a private hospital here after her condition worsened on Wednesday when her blood samples were collected for examination.
The examination of Bharti’s blood samples confirmed that she was suffering from scrub typhus following which the doctor began specific treatment on Thursday, he added.
Bharti’s father said she was on ventilator and succumbed to death during treatment on Friday evening reportedly due to multiple organ failure caused by scrub typhus.
