Alarming rise: Some 300 dengue cases reported in Punjab

Health secretary disputes the figure, says hardly five cases emerged this year.

ISLAMABAD: In Punjab, as many as 300 dengue cases have already been reported this year, despite the fact that the endemic season has not yet started. This is a big figure considering the fact that during the same period in 2013 and 2012, respectively, two and four dengue cases were reported.

According to the official documents available with The Express Tribune, out of the total cases, 149 have been reported from Lahore, 39 from Rawalpindi and the rest from other parts of Punjab, including Pakpattan, Sheikhupura, Multan, Kasur and Chakwal.

Talking to The Express Tribune, a vector control expert at Lahore’s Contech School of Public Health Professor Muhammad Saleem Rana said he had warned Punjab Health Department at the beginning of the year that there were chances of a massive outbreak of the viral disease.



“And cases started emerging even while the season had not yet started,” he said.

Prof Rana said considering the ongoing situation, chances are the cases would be 300 times more during the season starting from August. “These cases are a wakeup call for the government,” he added.

He said the main reason behind the massive number of cases, which apparently seem like an outbreak of dengue fever in Punjab, is lack of follow-up on the reported cases and absence of case response.

“Whenever a case is reported from any specific area, it is the prime responsibility of the provincial health department to take the action immediately and try to protect the other people living in the area by taking necessary measures,” he said.

When contacted, Punjab Health Secretary Javaid Malik refused to accept that these cases were reported this year. He was of the view that there were hardly four to five cases of dengue fever reported so far.

“We are strictly monitoring and taking action and if any case is reported from any area, we have SOPs to tackle the situation during the peak season. There are also committees in place to keep monitoring and discussing the issue,” he said.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 13^th, 2015.