At least 45 children and 8 adults in Uttar Pradesh's Firozabad have succumbed to a mysterious dengue-like fever in the past 10 days, NDTV reported.
High fever and low platelet count have been found as symptoms among the patients of the disease. The deaths will be investigated by a team of medical experts from King George's Medical University, Lucknow, in addition to a government surveillance team, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said.
Some other districts of western UP, including Mainpuri and Mathura, have also reported cases of the fever.
In the wake of the spread of the disease, with 186 people in the hospital, district magistrate Chandra Vijay Singh ordered classes for students of 1st-8th grades, in both government-run and private schools, to be halted till 6 September in Firozabad, news agency ANI reported.
CM Yogi Adityanath Visits Firozabad, Issues Directions
Chief Minister Adityanath visited the autonomous government medical college in Firozabad on Monday, and issued directions to the concerned officials for the management of the dengue and viral fever cases, his office stated.
The CM further directed the District Magistrate and Chief Medical Officer of Firozabad to conduct a detailed investigation into the causes behind the viral fever.
Adityanath said teams would be formed to confirm the cause of the deaths.
He directed the officials to send the blood samples of the patients to Sanjay Gandhi Postgraduate Institute of Medical Sciences, Lucknow, for examination.
“A separate ward has been created for this suspicious fever in Firozabad and the dedicated COVID-19 ward has been reserved as separate ward," Adityanath was quoted as saying by The Hindustan Times.
The chief minister further indicated that the first case of the fever had been detected on 18 August.
Priyanka Gandhi Offers Condolences, Calls for Action
Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Monday had taken to Twitter to express her condolences for the deceased in UP.
"The news of death of many people including children due to fever in Firozabad, Mathura, Agra and other places of UP is saddening. The Uttar Pradesh government should make efforts to prevent this disease by making health systems smart with immediate effect. Arrangements should also be made for better treatment of the people affected by the disease," she stated.
(With inputs from The Hindustan Times, PTI, and ANI)
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