AGARTALA:
Malaria cases are rapidly rising in four districts of Tripura, the national health mission expressed concerned, on June 13. The four districts in which malaria cases have seen a surge are Dhalai, Gomati, South and in parts of the Khowai district.
What is alarming, an official of the mission told The Meghalayan, is that the cases are higher than 2018 and the two fatalities reported this year are two children – one eight and another six-year-old.
“The numbers of cases that are detected have increased from past years. This is surprising though we were prepared. In places such as Longtharai Valley in Dhalai district, Gurudhanpara, Sikari Bari in Ambassa, Mungiakami in Khowai, in Silachari of Gomati, and in some bordering areas of Sabroom in South district, the cases are increasing. Every year we find malaria cases from these areas but this time the number is increasing comparably higher than the last three years. Till May, around 2005 positive cases were detected from these areas,” the official said.
Spotting a pattern in the rise of the cases, the official said that cases tend to see a surge in every four years. “In 2014 the number was high, the same happened in 2018 and now in 2022 which is somehow higher than in past years,” the official said, adding that among the four malaria-hit districts, Dhalai is the most affected district in the state.
The official, however, informed that surveillance in the malaria-affected areas, including mass testing and awareness camps, has been intensified. “We provide immediate treatment soon after we detect a positive case. However, there is no specific reason behind the rise in the cases of malaria but we are guessing, it is due to the rise in mosquito population,” he said.
The director of the National Health Mission, Siddhart Shiv Jaiswal, said that health officials are keeping a close eye on the situation.
“We have deployed ASHA and Anganwadi workers locally for door-to-door testing and are providing medicines. We have also formed a district-level special team and are reviewing the situation closely,” the health official said.
According to a malaria report, in 2015 there were 1, 651 cases and in 2016 the number went down to 668. Out of 1651 cases there were three deaths and out of 668 cases there were two deaths. In recent years, there were only 27 malaria cases till April 2017. From April 2015 to April 2017, the malaria trends showed a decline, however, the cases have subsequently started to rise again.