Bengaluru Rural MP and noted cardiologist Dr C N Manjunath on Saturday urged the Karnataka government to declare dengue as a state medical emergency in view of the growing number of cases.
He warned that if the breeding of mosquitoes is not contained, it can also lead to chikungunya, zika, and other harmful diseases.
“The cases are soaring close to 7,000 in the state with about six to seven deaths. Hassan, Chikmagalur, Bengaluru, and Mysore, among other districts, are seeing a steep rise in dengue cases. The government has to declare a state medical emergency to control the infection,” he said.
He also pinned the blame on civic bodies for triggering ground for mosquito breeding with their pending road, flyover, and underpass construction works during the rainy season. “The monsoon rain coupled with unfinished road work, and construction of flyovers and underpasses is increasing the breeding ground for mosquitoes. Ideally, civic bodies should have finished monsoon-related works during summer, but they are still pending,” Manjunath said.
Manjunath also appealed to the state government to constitute a task force consisting of representatives from health, urban development, zilla panchayat, water supply and sewerage board and other stakeholders to control the infection. “Additionally, many children are falling victim to dengue these days. School management should hold a meeting to identify ways to protect children from being infected. There is no treatment for dengue if the infections get complicated. In most of the cases it leads to death,” said Manjunath, adding that the government should focus more on poor households and migrant labourers.
While he welcomed the decision of capping the dengue testing rates in private hospitals and labs, he urged the government to take action against violators who overcharge patients for dengue testing.
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