Kerala on alert after H1N1, dengue cases surge; Report

Kerala is facing a severe outbreak of infectious diseases, with a significant rise in H1N1, dengue, and rat fever cases. In just 10 days, the state reported 1,075 dengue cases, 217 H1N1 cases, and 127 rat fever cases.

Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala is in a precarious situation as the number of infectious diseases in the state is rapidly increasing. H1N1 and dengue cases have surged, and the daily number of fever patients has surpassed 11,000. The incidence of infectious diseases is growing exponentially. The health department's special action plan to combat the outbreak will commence tomorrow.

In the past 10 days, Kerala has reported 1,075 dengue cases. Additionally, 217 cases of H1N1 and 127 cases of rat fever have been recorded. This month, 26 people have died from dengue fever, rat fever, and H1N1. On June 26 alone, 182 dengue cases were reported. The number of daily dengue cases has consistently exceeded 100. Last month, there were 1,150 confirmed dengue cases in the state, whereas this month, 2,013 people have been infected with dengue fever, with half of these cases reported in the past ten days.

This month has seen three and a half times more H1N1 cases compared to last month, and the number of rat fever cases has doubled. Ernakulam is reporting the highest number of dengue cases, while Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Alappuzha, Pathanamthitta, and Thrissur districts are also affected. It is estimated that the daily number of fever patients could rise to 20,000 within three weeks.

The Health Department attributes the spread of the epidemic to intermittent rains, the use of dirty water, and failures in pre-monsoon cleaning efforts. They noted that if one person in a household falls ill, the entire family often becomes infected.