With over 200 deaths reported because of Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES) and Japanese Encephalitis (JE) in West Bengal, the State government has urged the Centre to allow it to go in for adult vaccination programme to arrest the disease. So far vaccine has been administered only to children and according to senior officials of the State Health Department, the cases of vaccinated children affected by the disease is almost nil.
“We have requested the Centre to enlighten us about the pilot project on the adult vaccination conducted in Assam. If the Centre allows us to go ahead we are ready to vaccinate people,” B R Satpathy, Director of Health Services, told The Hindu on Monday.
According to the latest figures available with the Health Department, so far 206 persons have died of AES and JE in the State since January 2014. Of the 206 deaths, 37 are because of JE.
Dr. Satpathy said 92 deaths have occurred in the State in less than a month since July 7 after the outbreak was reported in north Bengal. Of the 92 deaths, 28 are because of JE, he said.
Despite attempts by the State government to contain the spread of encephalitis in north Bengal over the past few days there have been reports of the mosquito-borne disease spreading to districts of south Bengal as well.
Senior health officials admitted that at least two deaths have been reported in the districts of south Bengal. While a child died of acute encephalitis syndrome in Bankura district on Sunday, days ago, a person had died of Japanese encephalitis in Murshidabad district.
The State unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has accused the State government of not taking any help from the Centre to tackle the disease despite the Union Health Ministry extending all its support in the matter.
The BJP MP from Darjeeling, S S Ahulwalia, and Congress MP from Berhampore Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury raised the issue of encephalitis deaths in Parliament on Sunday and pointed out that the State government has done a little to contain the disease.
Meanwhile, another senior health official faced the State government’s ire in connection with the outbreak. Anup Roy, Principal of North Bengal Medical College and Hospital (NBMCH), which is dealing with a bulk of patients affected by AES and JE, was suspended on Monday.
Earlier, three senior health officials - medical superintendent of NBMCH and chief medical officer of health of Darjeeling and Jalpaiguri districts - were suspended by the Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who holds the health portfolio.
