The Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES) outbreak has reached the Northeast, after wreaking havoc in Bihar where it claimed more than 150 lives. According to an Indian Express report, Assam has recorded 10 deaths due to AES, principal secretary of the Health and Family Welfare department, Samir Sinha said.
According to the report, union health minister Dr Harsh Vardhan has already dispatched a central team to the state to review the situation there.
“I am closely monitoring the situation. The Health Ministry is coordinating with the Assam government for prevention and management of JE to ensure that the cases don’t rise in the state.”Dr Harsh Vardhan, Union Health Minister
He said the Health Ministry is providing all logistical and technical support to the state government in terms of surveillance and diagnostic kits to strengthen their efforts in addressing JE.
Sinha told the daily that out of the 10 people killed in the state, eight are adults while two are children. Doctors in Guwahati have said that the vaccination for Japanese Encephalitis has really helped bring down the number of cases over the years.
The Indian Express reports that the number of those affected has gone down to 58 in 2017 from 100 in 2007.
(With inputs from The Indian Express and PTI)
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)