Amid reports of hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD) or ‘tomato flu’ in Kerala, Health Secretary J. Radhakrishnan on Friday urged the public not to create panic as the Health Department is monitoring the situation across the State.
He visited the Coimbatore Medical College Hospital (CMCH) on Friday evening, where he inspected the construction works of the seven-storey super-speciality block that is funded by the Japan International Cooperation Agency.
Speaking to mediapersons, he clarified that the ‘tomato flu’ is an “undifferentiated fever,” which affects children below five years of age and the recovery is quick.
Fever monitoring, especially at the 13 inter-State border districts, is being carried out and all the districts are being monitored on a daily basis by the Health Department. He also advised the public not to consume artificially ripened mangoes during the summer season.
Noting that the COVID-19 cases are on the decline, Mr. Radhakrishnan urged the public to continue adherence to the safety protocols and get vaccinated.
On the importance of vaccination, he noted how the recent COVID-19 clusters at IIT-Madras in Chennai and the Sathya Sai Medical College in Chengalpattu district were brought under control in a short span of time as most of the students were vaccinated. “Both these cases show that we should continue to remain careful,” he said.
Earlier in the day, Mr. Radhakrishnan told reporters in Tiruppur that over 3,000 stalls selling shawarma have been inspected across all districts following the death of a girl in Kerala after consuming the dish. He also denied rumours of shawarma being banned in the State.
He noted that through the 11 medical colleges that were recently inaugurated, including the Government Medical College Hospital in Tiruppur, there will be 1,450 additional postings of doctors in the State.
Mr. Radhakrishnan distributed tablet computers to five undergraduate medical students at the Tiruppur Government Medical College Hospital, who got admissions through the 7.5% horizontal reservation for NEET-qualified students from government schools.
