Odishatv Bureau

Malkangiri: The toll due to Japanese Encephalitis reached 52 with a death of a 2-year-old girl at district headquarters hospital here on Friday.

The deceased has been identified as Jayanti Madkami of Katangapallu village under Padia block in the district.

It’s worthwhile to mention here that, Rebika(7), elder sister of Jayanati, also succumbed to the vector-borne disease on Thursday. With the fresh death, the toll mounted to 52 in last 36 days.

On Thursday, Health secretary Arti Ahuja visited the Japanese Encephalitis affected villages in the distict and took stock of the situation there.

After reviewing the situation, Ahuja said special enclosures have been made by the Fisheries and Animal Resources Development (F&ARD) department to keep the pigs away from the villages as a preventive measure. Arrangements have been made to provide food to these pigs. Besides, frequent fogging is carried out in and around the enclosures as well as villages to make the areas mosquito-free, she added.

Also read: Encephalitis outbreak: Admn steps up sanitation measures in Malkangiri

“This apart, steps are being taken by Rural Development department and District Rural Development Agency (DRDA) to fill up water-logged areas in the villages with sands to stop mosquito breeding. Also, the school teachers, whose puja vacation is cancelled, are visiting the affected villages and making people aware of Japanese Encephalitis and its preventive measures”, she pointed out.

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