Fear of epidemic in Uttarakhand, Centre rushes health team

New Delhi: Amid fears of disease outbreak after widespread devastation in flood-affected Uttarakhand, the Union health ministry has deputed a high-level team which will review the public health measures in the state on Wednesday. The ministry said it was monitoring the situation and has initiated a few steps for relief operations that include posting of three Central public health teams in the state. “Eight additional teams are also kept on standby, ready to move at short notice,” a health ministry statement said. [caption id=“attachment_904525” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Duty before self. Image courtesy PIB[/caption] It added that district units of Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP), NRHM is conducting health surveillance in all affected districts of the flood-hit state. “After picking up early warning signals, diarrhoea cases in Haridwar (Alwalpur), Uttarkashi (Udvi) and Rudraprayag (Chandrapuri) have been managed at incipient stage. No outbreak of water borne/food borne/air borne or direct contact diseases has been reported from affected areas,” it said. Besides, a specialist from National Vector Borne Disease Control Programme has been placed with the state government for providing assistance on matters pertaining to vector borne diseases and three teams have been arranged from NIMHANS, Bangalore for providing psycho-social support. Two specialists each in cardiology, psychiatry and internal medicine have been placed with the state government. The ministry said the state government has requested to supply specified quantity of 60 drug and non-drug items and three truckloads of such medical supplies have been delivered as an interim measure. “On the state’s request, 10 lakh chlorine tablets are being procured by MOHFW,” the ministry said. The Indian Red Cross Society has provided 7 truckloads of relief material that includes tents, family packs, kitchen sets, blankets, lanterns. The ministry said 1,100 bags for carrying bodies have been arranged through it and additional 500 bags procured by the ministry have also been sent. The Red Cross deployed teams from Delhi to Uttarkashi and Pittoragarh while another high-level team from the headquarters also visited the state for assessment and coordinating relief work with state Red Cross unit. PTI