Shimla, Sept 22: The mystery fever which created panic in some parts of Himachal has been identified as reckettsial disease, according to a communique received from the National Institute of Communicable Diseases (NICD). Stating this here today, principal of Indira Gandhi Medical College, Dr Harbans Kapoor said the disease was scrub typhus, a type of reckettsial disease and was not (not) contagious. He said the patients of the disease were responding to tetracycline.

Dr Kapoor said fifteen people had died of this disease and clarified that two deaths caused by other diseases were wrongly attributed to the mystery fear.
He said that 100 patients, including four children, were admitted to the hospital of which 54 were discharged.

There were no children among the deceased. Meanwhile, seven more patients with symptoms of fever were admitted to the hospital today.

Bureau Report