KOZHIKODE: A 24-hour control room was opened at the Government General Hospital in Kozhikode on Saturday, as Malaria cases are being reported from various parts of the district, especially the Kozhikode Corporation.
District Medical Officer V. Jayasree said more than 30 cases had been reported from the coastal parts of the city in the last one month. That many of these are indigenous cases is a cause for concern for the health authorities.
Two types of malaria — Plasmodium Vivax and Plasmodium Falciparum — have been reported in the district, and the latter affects the brain. The infection is determined through a blood test. Those with fever have been advised to get a blood test done immediately.
Meanwhile, the corporation has issued a red alert, besides expediting preventive measures in the coastal areas as 10 cases of malaria have been reported from areas near the Puthiyappa harbour.
Health officials have noted that unused boats and fish caskets in the harbour have become breeding grounds for Anopheles mosquitoes that cause malaria. Attempts are being made to shift them from the harbour.
Meanwhile, in a press release, Mayor Thottathil Raveendran instructed all employers to take preventive steps against malaria for all labourers in the harbour and to follow the directions of the departments of Harbour and Fisheries. It has been noted that labourers’ stay in the harbour and beach beyond their working hours, leading to infection quite often.
Those accommodating migrant labourers should make sure that they undergo timely health check-up and blood test for malaria as they are the most vulnerable.
Officials have also noted that mosquito breeding has been unchecked in certain unused apartments and have directed owners to get necessary cleaning done. Non-compliance of the directions will be charged under the Disaster Management Act.
The officials are now focusing on covering shallow tanks and wells, depositing guppy fishes in them, and spraying larvicide and fogging.
