12 new Zika cases in Jaipur, count up to 72
ALARM Officials say 60 patients have recovered, while 12 are under observation JAIPUR:
Twelve new cases of Zika virus disease have been reported in Jaipur on Monday, taking the total number of cases reported in the past 25 days to 72.
According to the health department, the infected areas are Shastri Nagar, Station Road area around Rajput Hostel and Vidyadhar Nagar.
Health department additional chief secretary Veenu Gupta said out of 72 cases, 60 patients have recovered, while 12 are under observation. She said alert has been issued to other parts of the city.
“More than 280 teams of health department are conducting door-to-door survey and so far 96,000 houses have been surveyed. More than 2.44 lakh containers were checked and larvae were found in more than 55,000 containers, which were treated,” she said.
Screening steps to destroy the larvae are being carried out. In door-to-door survey, patients with fever, especially pregnant women in the first trimester, are being identified and samples collected.
Gupta said people have to come forward and cooperate in controlling vector-borne diseases such as zika, dengue, chikungunya and malaria.
“We do not want to impose penalty for mosquito breeding, but are forced to as despite persuasion and creating awareness, people are still not taking it seriously and are storing water in the open,” Gupta said. So far, 68 challans have been issued and ~44,000 has been collected in penalty.
She said there is no need to be scared of Zika virus infection, as it is not fatal. Special attention is given to pregnant women as there are chances of foetus being affected by during the first trimester. These women are advised against travelling around the city as a preventive measure, Gupta said.