Government fails to cope with dengue virus

02 Nov, 2006

The government has failed to take any concrete measures to cope with the deadly dengue virus, as the number of suspected patients is increasing at an alarming rate. According to the health authorities, so far 2,350 patients with symptoms similar to viral hemorrhagic fever have been admitted to different hospitals of the country.
It is disturbing to note that not only 741 patients have been tested positive but the death toll has shot up to 31, negating government's tall claims of having everything well under control.
The fatal mosquito-borne disease of dengue fever has become a major health hazard not only in Sindh but it has hit the federal capital, Lahore, and now Azad Jammu Kashmir (AJK) with the similar intensity.
The government says that by Wednesday evening the total number of positive cases in Islamabad and Rawalpindi remained 96, as 55 cases were reported in Rawalpindi whereas 41 hospitalised patients were tested positive in Islamabad.
However, according to hospital sources, the number is quite high and more than 200 patients have been admitted in twin-city hospitals who are suspected victims of this fatal disease.
Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz and Health Minister Muhammad Nasir Khan believe the government was closely monitoring cases of dengue fever and both federal as well as provincial governments had taken prompt preventive steps.

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