Epidemics
Malaria alert in Tripura
By IANS
Apr 23, 2006, 19:18

Health authorities in Tripura Saturday sounded a malaria alert after at least 50 people died of the disease in neighbouring Assam.

A government spokesman said all precautionary measures were being taken to prevent an outbreak of malaria in Tripura.

"We have cancelled leave of all field staff of the health department. Doctors and paramedics have fanned out to the interior areas to take preventive steps," a health official said.

Health workers were spraying disinfectants in vulnerable areas, besides collecting blood samples following reports of fever in some areas bordering Assam.

"Our medical teams are conducting health camps and sufficient stocks of anti-malaria drugs have been rushed to areas from where we received reports of fever," the official said.

The entire northeast, including Tripura, is known to be malaria prone.

According to officials, around 15 to 20 people die every year of the disease in Tripura.

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