Uttarakhand Health Secretary urges for blood donation amid surge in dengue cases

Dehradun: In view of the continuous surge in dengue cases, the Uttarakhand Government on Monday urged citizens to donate blood.

Amid the dengue outbreak in the state, Uttarakhand Health Secretary Dr R Rajesh Kumar appealed to the people of the state for blood donation.

Earlier today, Dr R Rajesh Kumar made a visit to the Coronation Hospital in Dehradun. He instructed the officials to repair all the facilities in the hospital and met with dengue patients.

He also reprimanded the staff for the lack of arrangements within the hospital and gave instructions to open the pathology lab of the hospital by 8 p.m. on Monday.

Earlier on Tuesday, dengue cases in the state crossed 600 cases creating fear among the residents of Uttarakhand.

Haridwar, Udham Singh Nagar and Dehradun districts of the state are the most affected by dengue.

In the aftermath of recent heavy monsoon floods that inundated parts of Uttarakhand, health officials are grappling with a significant surge in dengue cases.

Dengue (break-bone fever) is a viral infection that spreads from mosquitoes to people.

Waterlogging in areas due to incessant rains has caused a preferable environment for Aedes mosquitoes to breed. These mosquitoes are responsible for transmitting Dengue, Chikungunya, and Zika viruses.

Medical Dialogues team had earlier reported that in view of the surge in dengue cases in the state, Haryana's Health Minister Anil Vij said ''fever corners'' would be set up in government hospitals for prompt treatment. He also said fogging machines would be distributed in urban and rural areas of the state to curb the spread of vector-borne diseases. Vij presided over a review meeting about vector-borne diseases with the officers of Health and Family Welfare Department, Development and Panchayat Department and Urban Local Bodies and other departments concerned here, an official statement said.