india

Updated: Jul 20, 2019 01:03 IST

The death toll from Japanese Encephalitis (JE) in Assam reached 101 on Friday even as the state continues to battle flood fury caused by the monsoon rain.

State health department officials said special measures are being taken in flood-affected areas to prevent the spread of the disease.

On Friday, the daily report from the National Health Mission Assam noted four more JE deaths. It showed a total of 1,569 cases of Acute Encephalitis Syndrome cases, including 439 JE cases, since April this year.

Last year, there were 509 cases and 94 deaths in Assam as a result of JE, which is transmitted by mosquitoes.

“Kamrup (Rural) district, in the vicinity of Guwahati, has recorded 11 deaths, the highest in the state,” said Chittaranjan Pathak, state programme officer, National Vector Borne Disease Control Programme. Information furnished by NHM showed Lakhimpur has recorded 37 JE positive cases, the highest in the state.

Pathak said the transmission of JE showed a downward trend and situation has improved. “In flood-affected areas, our colleagues are trying their level best. In all flood relief camps extensive fogging is done and awareness campaigns are being held,” he said adding so far there were no reports of any infections in the camps.

As on Friday, as many as 4.88 million people have been affected by the floods while another 147, 833 people have taken shelter in relief camps across the state.

A large number of flood affected people are living in shanties on high grounds with their animals, including pigs, in immediate vicinity.

“Pigs are the carriers of the JE virus,” said SM Sarmah, joint director, health, Kamrup (Rural). He, however, hoped that the floods would have washed away the mosquito larvae, thereby reducing the chances of transmission of the disease.

“We hope the situation will improve due to floods and mosquito breeding will go down,” he said. In his district, a part of which is reeling under floods, no new JE infection has been reported since July 13