Dengue under control in State, says Health Secretary in Madurai; preventive measures being taken in districts where cases are reported in large numbers

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Principal Secretary (Health and Family Welfare) Darez Ahmed interacting with a resident during an inspection at Simmakkal in Madurai on Thursday. | Photo Credit: R. ASHOK

Stating that dengue fever was largely under control across Tamil Nadu, Principal Secretary (Health and Family Welfare) Darez Ahmed said on Thursday that numerous measures were being taken in districts where the number of cases was higher.

The top official was in Madurai to take stock of the preparedness of officials in handling dengue cases. He inspected Simakkal (in Ward 50, Zone 3) in Madurai city and interacted with a few residents during a door-to-door survey at Lakshmi Narayanapuram Agraharam, accompanied by District Collector Nishanth Krishna, Corporation Commissioner Gaurav Kumar and others.

Speaking to media persons, Mr. Darez Ahmed said that with the northeast monsoon setting in, the government was prepared to tackle cases of dengue, cholera, typhoid and other types of fever.

In response to a query, he said that as of September 23, there had been nine deaths and 17,939 cases of dengue across the State. RT-PCR tests were being conducted at 131 locations, and so far, 2.23 lakh people had been screened.

Answering another question, he said that dengue fever cases were well under control and there was no need for panic. He explained the steps being taken by field staff of the department and appealed to residents to cooperate by ensuring that there was no waterlogging, among other measures.

He said Chennai, Coimbatore, Tiruvallur, Salem, Chengalpattu and a few other districts were under constant monitoring as higher numbers of cases were being reported. “We are closely observing and visiting the spots where dengue positive cases were coming in from,” he stressed.

In Madurai, as of September 23, 288 dengue fever cases had been reported, including 105 in Corporation limits, 11 in municipalities, nine in panchayats and 163 in town panchayats. Field staff were carrying out fogging, which would be intensified in rural pockets as well.

The State government has deployed 26,303 DBCs across the State, and so far, 5,818 field surveys have been carried out. “We are proactive, and there is no need for any concern, as there is adequate coordination among key departments, which has helped in containing dengue phenomenally,” he summed up.

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