The number of fatalities due to chikungunya complications has risen to 15 in the national capital, even as Delhi government today sought people's cooperation in combating vector-borne diseases which have affected over 2,800 people in the city.
Two more deaths have been reported at the Sir Ganga Ram Hospital (SGRH), where five other persons have died due to chikungunya complications in the last one week.
"Two elderly persons, both aged above 70 and belonging to Delhi, died on September 15 of chikungunya complications at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital (SGRH). One of them suffered from hypertension while the other had kidney problems," a hospital source said.
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Out of the 15 deaths, Apollo Hospital has reported five, while AIIMS, Hindu Rao Hospital and PSRI recorded one death each.
Meanwhile, the committee set up by the Delhi government to review cases of death attributed to dengue and chikungunya complications has "ruled out" chikungunya as the primary cause of fatality and said it was "co-morbid conditions" in its patients which led to their deaths.
The Death Review Committee in its report, which was released today by the Delhi government, has, however, only reviewed nearly 20 cases. Review of some of the cases are still awaited, for "lack of documents" from the hospitals.
Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain, earlier in the day said a mass awareness campaign is being launched across the city tomorrow under which people have been asked to devote at least 30 minutes to check if there were stagnant water in their residential complexes and around it, to prevent mosquito-breeding.
"We appeal to people to devote at least half an hour time from their daily life and work towards this campaign. There are 42 lakh households in Delhi, and if all of you cooperate then we can together root out dengue and chikungunya from the city," he told reporters.
Delhi government has been under attack from opposition parties for "failing" to check the spread of the two vector-borne diseases.
"While we are saying that chikungunya cannot kill we are not taking it any less seriously. We want people to know that Delhi government is adequately prepared and, our hospitals and mohalla clinics are equipped with testing facilities and fever clinics. So, no need to panic," a top official said.
He said, there are adequate beds in Delhi hospitals and over 400 fever clinics to cater to patients.
Doctors say that chikungunya is not a life-threatening disease in general, but in rare cases leads to complications that prove fatal, especially in children and elderly persons.
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"This Sunday clean your house & surroundings of any stagnant water. Stop breeding of Dengue & Chikangunia mosquito," Jain tweeted earlier in the day.
"Visited LNH hospital. Fever ward has many beds available. V good arrangements for Dengue/Chikungunya," he said.
The death toll due to dengue in the national capital stands 18 with half of the fatalities reported at AIIMS even as the number of cases of the vector-borne disease has crossed 1,100.
The South Delhi Municipal Corporation, which compiles the report on vector-borne diseases on behalf of all civic bodies here, has maintained the death toll at four.
The review committee report on the deaths attributed to dengue and chikungnya has also revised the dengue figures. Out of the nearly 20 cases examined by it for the two diseases, the panel says, "only two suspected dengue deaths happened."
At least 1,158 cases of dengue have been reported in the national capital with nearly 390 of them being recorded in the first 10 days of September, the month in which the vector- borne disease begins to peak.
Out of the total number of cases, August alone has accounted for 652.
Iram Khan (25), a native of Meerut, who lived in Jamia Nagar in south Delhi had succumbed to dengue on August 31 at Apollo Hospital.
The other three deaths reported by SDMC include Nazish (38), sister-in-law of Okhla MLA Amanatullah Khan, who had died of dengue shock syndrome at Apollo Hospital on August 12.
Muskan (12), a resident of Shaheen Bagh here, had died on July 29, while Deepak (19), from Jaunpur in Uttar Pradesh, succumbed to the disease on July 27. Both died at Safdarjung Hospital.
Besides, five other fatalities have been reported by different hospitals in the city which have not yet been acknowledged by the SDMC.
The vector-borne disease had claimed its first victim on July 21 when a girl from Jafrabad in northeast Delhi died at Lok Nayak Jai Prakash (LNJP) Hospital.
Last year, the city saw a staggering 15,867 dengue cases --the worst in 20 years--with the disease claiming 60 lives, as per municipal reports. In 1996, a severe outbreak of dengue had occurred in Delhi when about 10,252 cases and 423 deaths were reported.
