Overview
- Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari chaired a high-level review on Tuesday and placed dengue control under the Chief Minister’s Office and the state health department for coordinated action.
- The state reported 4,035 confirmed dengue cases up to August 19 with seven deaths officially attributed to dengue and a toll of 10 when patients who tested positive but had other serious conditions are included.
- Authorities have named five dengue-prone districts—Kolkata, Howrah, North 24 Parganas, South 24 Parganas and Murshidabad—and ordered intensified surveillance and vector-control work there.
- Concrete measures announced include free diagnostic testing, distribution of larvicide and mosquito nets to vulnerable groups, instructions for doctors to record dengue on prescriptions, and a three-day statewide cleanliness drive starting September 3.
- Officials warned that lower test volumes and redeployment of frontline larval-control staff to Ayushman Bharat, plus many dissolved municipal boards, complicate surveillance and the state will keep monitoring the situation through at least October and possibly November.