Dengue strike rate may go up: Experts

KOLKATA: Two

dengue

deaths in the Kolkata Municipal Corporation area on Thursday indicated the virus was still active and the outbreak could now gather momentum in the city proper, felt experts. Once it reached a densely populated neighbourhood like Ballygunge area, where the deaths have occurred, more were likely to get affected in a short span of time, they feared.

“We are on the verge of the peak dengue season. The two deaths signal the virus is finally travelling along the familiar EM Bypass route and has hit south Kolkata. So far, the number of patients has been fairly low, but a spiral could be imminent,” said Irfaan Akhtar, head of microbiology at Fortis hospital.

A KMC health department official agreed with the expert. “This is the time when there should be no room for complacency so far as prevention of dengue is concerned. We have to fight tooth-and-nail to contain the disease from being an epidemic,” the official said.

Requesting anonymity, the official expressed apprehension about the route the dengue has been taking of late.

“Till a fortnight ago, areas such as Tollygunge, Prince

Anwar Shah

, Lake Gardens, Jodhpur Park, Golf Green under Borough X remained the worst-affected. Now dengue has reached EM Bypass, touching areas like Dhakuria, Ballygunge, Kasba and Haltu. This new trend is really worrying us as the dreaded disease has already claimed two lives in the Kasba area,” the KMC official said.

In 2015, dengue turned epidemic in Kolkata after it started from Salt Lake and took the EM Bypass route to reach Tiljala, Topsia and then entered south Kolkata through

East Kolkata Township Project

area and the Prince Anwar Shah connector to Bypass. “Areas such as Park Circus, Tiljala, Topsia, Elliot Road and Entally have been affected. But the virus has so far spread from north Kolkata via Cossipore and Dum Dum. If dengue takes the Salt Lake route to enter EM Bypass, it will be double trouble to us,” a KMC borough health official said.

So far, 18 dengue deaths have been reported in the state, but just two in the city. An intense awareness campaign launched by the KMC in January paid dividends till July. But dengue started to haunt south and central Kolkata from early August said doctors. “This year has been much better compared to the last few. But two deaths in Kolkata proper are really worrying. It shows the virus is now lurking in the city and an outbreak could happen any time now,” warned Debashish Saha, consultant, AMRI hospital.

Though there has been no major dengue spurt in the private hospitals along the EM Bypass till now, the numbers are steadily rising. At Ruby

General Hospital

, the number of dengue patients rose from three to five last week while at Rabindranath Tagore International Institute for Cardiac Sciences, the number has been going up and down over the last four weeks. The next month could be crucial, said a private hospital CEO.

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