Bhubaneswar: The `vibrio cholerae` bacteria
was detected in water sources of Southern Orissa`s Rayagada
district where at least 34 people have died of diarrhoea in
last two months, official sources said today.
Of the 16 water samples examined at the regional
medical research centre (RMC) here, six tested positive to
vibrio cholerae, said D N Nayak, the team leader of state
health human resource management.
"While four cases were confirmed in Kashipur block of
Rayagada district, two tested positive to the killer bacteria
at Kalyansinghpur," Nayak said adding that additional
medical teams were rushed to affected areas to control the
situation created after detection of cholera in Rayagada.
"At least 137 people died during last six months while
34 persons died in Rayagada district alone in last 60 days,"
an official in the health department said.
Meanwhile, the state government placed two doctors
under suspension for dereliction in duty. "The two doctors
from neighbouring Balangir district were today suspended as
they did not turn up to attend patients in Rayagada district,"
Health Minister Prasanna Acharya told reporters.
The director of national rural health mission (NRHM)
was camping at Rayagada to oversee situation and ensure that
the disease was contained soon, the minister said.
The disease was assuming epidemic form with more and
more people getting infected to diarrhoea in Raygada (34),
Nuapada (27) and Nabarangpur (10), the sources said.
The tribal peoples` reluctance in seeking medical help
was another reason behind the high number of deaths from the
disease, health department joint director Bikas Patnaik said.
"Spread of diarrhoea in Rayagada and other tribal areas
was mostly due to intake of polluted water," Patnaik, who is
supervising health service in the area, said.
PTI
