GUWAHATI, July 1 - A Central government team reviewed the situation in Assam following the death of 21 people due to Japanese Encephalitis. Till June 30, besides the 21 deaths, 69 positive cases have been also reported across the State.
The Central government team, which arrived here yesterday, held a meeting with senior health officials before winding up their visit today.
�So far the situation is under control but July and August are critical months. So the people need to be alert,� a Central government official said.
Today also a few deaths were reported, but health officials were yet to ascertain the actual number.
�Cases have been reported from twenty districts so far. Jorhat and Kamrup have reported the maximum,� a health official said, adding that the situation was under control and there was nothing to panic.
Last year, the State had registered 94 JE deaths and 509 positive cases.
�The problem with JE is that there is no specific treatment, though it is preventable,� a health official said.
The official said fogging operations are being carried at affected areas and the medical and para-medical staff are trained to handle the cases.
�We have also stepped up fever surveillance. People affected by fever are being brought to hospitals for tests in 108 vehicles. ICU beds are also being earmarked in hospitals to handle JE cases. Diagnostics kits are also being made available wherever required,� the official said.
The official, however, admitted that the vaccination coverage in the State needs to be increased because the positive cases have been identified as those people who have not being covered in the vaccination programmes. In some districts, the vaccination coverage is around 50 per cent.
