According to official reports, 24 tribals from the Kalahandi district in the state of Orissa have fallen prey to the water borne disease over the past fortnight and another two dozen are undergoing treatment.
District collector R. Santhanagopalan stated, “So far we have lost 24 lives to diarrhea. The situation is under control. There was no death in the past 48 hours.”
Regions most affected
The outbreak was perceived in the first week of August, from a village 30 km from Bhawanipatna town, and soon spread its tentacles in a number of villages, claiming lives in three gram panchayats of Bhawanipatna and six in Lanjigarh block.
Thirteen people succumbed to the disease in five tribal villages under Bhawanipatna block, while 11 deaths were reported from four hamlets under Lanjigarh block.
The villages in Bhawanipatna block from where fatalities were reported are, Panchbaheli (6), Jamchuan (3), Tengnabaheli (2) and Rukunibundel and Bundelguda (1 each).
Affected villages under Lanjigarh block are Ghatikundra (6), Tarangsel (3) and Talbora and Jalkrida (1 each).
Measures adopted
According to the health officials, although the situation in Lanjigarh is well under control because of the intensive health measures adopted, the state of affairs at Bhawanipatna block is still a cause for concern.
Santhanagopalan stated that nearly 900 patients had been successfully treated while 63 were still under medical supervision.
In addition, temporary health camps to monitor the situation are set up at various places after the outbreak.
In an effort to combat the outbreak, the district administration is offering an incentive of Rs 200 for those getting admitted to hospitals.
To tackle the disease, five medical teams have been deputed at Lanjigarh while five more have been camping at Bhawanipatna. “We are planning to depute 20 more teams to different areas. Ten teams are being brought from Balangir,” said Gopalan.
Reasons for the spread of the disease
Although no concrete explanation is available for the spread of diarrhea, the prime reasons attributed to the worsening situation are unhygienic living conditions and contaminated drinking water sources.
Despite having the availability of tube wells, the tribals still tend to consume polluted water through ponds and streams.
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