Delhi's Health Minister Satyendra Jain on Thursday appealed to the Centre to convene a meeting of health ministers of the National Capital Region (NCR) to discuss ways to coordinate and solve all Chikungunya and Dengue-related cases.
In a letter written to Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare J.P. Nadda, Jain said the Government of Delhi has been making its best efforts to coordinate with the Union Health and Family Welfare Ministry and its affiliate hospitals and other institutions to tackle the problem of the outbreak of Chikungunya and Dengue by making requisite arrangements in Delhi Government-run hospitals and related institutions.
However, he said, that there were a large number of patients coming to these hospitals from the NCR apparently due to lack of proper healthcare facilities in these states - namely Uttar Pradesh and Haryana.
This Jain said was creating avoidable pressure on medical institutions managed by the Delhi Government, and therefore there was an urgent need to review state-wise actions required to augment healthcare facilities for effective tackling of the issue.
Earlier in the day, Jain reiterated that Chikungunya cannot cause deaths, and added that this is a fact that is available on Google, and not his opinion.
Speaking to media here, Jain said that Delhiites need not panic and that all they needed to do is to take precautions and go to the hospital only if they experience symptoms of the vector-borne disease.
"People of Delhi have no need to panic. The state government is ready to provide help at all cost. But one should get admitted only if the doctor advises them to do so and not because they are scared," he said.
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Talking about the recent casualties, Jain stated that four of the five deaths had been reported from the same hospital, which made the situation quite suspicious.
"Chikungunya deaths are not happening across the world. Why is it only in a select few Delhi hospitals? And upon enquiry, I have discovered that most of the deaths are of people who were aged and already sick with other ailments," the minister said.
Union Health Minister J.P. Nadda said that no complaints of shortage of medicine or doctors and testing facilities have been reported, adding that the Centre is fully prepared to tackle the crisis.
Nadda said the Centre has held a review meeting in this regard and found out that there is an increase in cases of Chikungunya in Delhi, whereas the hike in cases of Dengue have been reported from West Bengal, Odisha and Karnataka.
Meanwhile, some people in West Bengal have tested positive for malaria also.
Nadda informed, "We today held a review meeting in regard with the upsurge of vector borne diseases. In Delhi, an increase in cases of Chikungunya has been reported, and meanwhile, large number of cases of fever has been reported. In West Bengal, Odisha and Karnataka, cases of dengue have been reported. In West Bengal, cases of malaria have been reported."
Nadda further said the Centre has also held three video conferences in this regard, and added that he had also called on the Delhi Health Minister, the NDMC and the MCD, and guided them on protocols to be followed to counter the spread of this disease.
"In one video conference, I addressed the state Health Ministers. The second was addressed by the Secretary and the third was done by heads of vector borne diseases," he said.
Nadda also urged the people not to panic and help in pacifying the current upsurge of vector borne diseases.
Dr. D.S. Rana, the chairperson of the Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, said, "Have just received an e-mail from the Government of India that deaths reported in the Ganga Ram Hospital of chikungunya positive patients should be probed a little more and information should be given to them."
"By and large the message is very clear that Chikungunya is not a very fatal disease, people should not get frightened. Hospitals are doing their best, be it government or private," he added.