West Bengal: 11 dengue deaths in 3 days, don't panic, says Mamata

West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee has urged people not to panic after reports that 40 people have died of dengue in the state.

Mamata Banerjee said her government was taking adequate measures to contain the situation and that corporate houses were passing wrong information to the people since they had opposed the government's decision to set up a health commission, The Indian Express reported.

Mamata Banerjee claimed that so far 40 people had died of vector-borne-diseases and not dengue alone in West Bengal, the Indian Express report said. She said that 13 deaths had been verified by the state government so far.

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At least 11 people have died in West Bengal's North 24 Parganas district in the last three days, The Times of India reported.

The chief minister added that her government had received a report of 27 deaths due to malaria, dengue or swine flu and that it was yet to verify the reports.

The chief minister said she would take strong action against the corporate houses spreading misinformation, the media report said.

She added that the government was taking measures to control the situation and that doctors were working 24 hours.

“There is no need to panic. Some people are trying to create a panic with a vested interest. Some corporate houses, which had opposed our decision to set up a health commission, are passing wrong information. We will take strong action against them. We are monitoring the situation 24 hours. The government is taking all measures to control the situation and provide relief to the people. Some doctors are also working 24 hours. We have also alerted all municipalities to launch a special drive to kill mosquitoes,” The report in the Indian Express quoted the West Bengal chief minister as saying.

The Chief Minister cited data from other states and said the deaths in West Bengal were lesser compared to states like Maharashtra
(695), Gujarat (435) and Rajasthan (230).

"In Gujarat, 435 people have died due to vector-borne diseases. In Maharashtra, the number is 695. In Rajasthan the number is 230. In Uttar Pradesh, it is 165 and in Madhya Pradesh it is 141. Even in smaller state like Kerala it is 111 and in Tamil Nadu it is 12. In Assam, the number is 87 and the same in Orissa is 83. These reports were uploaded 15 days ago. I do not have the latest data. We
have received 21,000 complaints and are confirming that we have received 13 dengue death reports from state hospitals and 27 such reports from private hospitals. We are yet to verify the 27 reports," Mamata Banerjee was quoted as saying.

Congress and BJP workers protested in Kolkata over the spread of the mosquito-borne disease in the state, PTI reported.

A rise in dengue cases have been reported across the country in the past few days, media reports said.

Fifty two people have died of dengue in Tamil Nadu this year till October 29, 10 times the number last year.

In Punjab's Kapurthala district alone, 672 cases have been reported in the last few days, a report in The Tribune said.

Over 6000 cases (6771) have been reported this year as of October 28, The Hindustan Times reported.

In Mumbai, over 2000 patients have been treated for dengue in civic hospitals between October 1 and October 15, Scroll reported.