With Japanese Encephalitis claiming 41 lives in Malkangiri, Odisha government today began providing free cooked food to ailing children and pregnant women in disease-hit areas of the district besides launching cleanliness drive in neighbouring Koraput.
Pregnant and lactating women and ailing children are being provided cooked food at 479 anganwadi centres spread over Kalimela and Korakonda blocks, said Malkangiri district Collector K Sudarshan Chakravarthy.
Arrangements have been made to provide accommodation and food to them for lunch and dinner in the disease affected villages, he said adding the objective is to tackle the problem of malnutrition by providing nutritious food.
While around 12,000 mosquito nets have so far been distributed among the people in the affected areas, fogging and spraying of repellents had been intensified in order to check mosquito menace, the collector said.
Noting that no death due to the killer disease was reported today and the toll stood at 41, he said as many as 47 children were discharged from hospital after being cured in the last two days.
While 60 extra beds were arranged at the district headquarters hospital here, two more beds were added in the ICU, he said.
The Collector also dismissed as baseless allegation made by Congress leader Pradeep Majhi that some children were missing from Malkangiri hospital.
"Nobody can go missing from the hospital as record of admission and discharge of patients is maintained properly," he said.
Meanwhile, cleanliness drive was launched in adjoining Koraput district as precautionary measure to check mosquitoes and prevent the outbreak of Japanese Encephalitis.
Steps were taken for spray of mosquito repellent, while veterinary officials are collecting blood samples of pigs for test as these animals are carriers of the disease, said Sub-Collector Krutibas Rout.
An awareness campaign has been launched highlighting the need of using mosquito net too.
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