Swine flu claims 3 more lives, toll climbs to 72

A toddler and two middle-aged people have succumbed to swine flu in Maharashtra, Karnataka and Gujarat, pushing the pandemic toll to 72, even as schools and colleges in Pune, shut due to the spurt in the infection, reopened today after nearly two weeks.

Over 100 more fresh cases of flu infection were reported from various states yesterday, Union Health Ministry officials said in Delhi.

The two-and-a-half year-old child who died was suffering from a liver disorder. She was admitted to the Command Hospital in worst-hit Pune on August 21 after testing positive for the virus, health officials said.  She passed away last night, they said. With the toddler’s death, the toll in Pune has risen to 23 and in Maharashtra to 39.

A 50-year-old woman, Sarojamma, was admitted to Thirumala Hospital in Bangalore on August 15 and given Tamiflu treatment but she died last night, hospital sources said.

52-year-old Rajesh Udhad, who was admitted to Wockhardt Hospital in Rajkot on August 20 after he showed flu symptoms like fever, breathlessness and vomitting, died this morning, raising the virus toll in Gujarat to seven.

With the two deaths, fatalities due to the disease has climbed to 72. This includes Karnataka with 13, Tamil Nadu and Chhattisgarh with three each, Delhi two and Kerala, Goa, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand and Haryana one each.

Meanwhile, schools and colleges in Pune reopened today after almost two weeks of closure effected by the authorities to prevent spread of the flu virus.