The district administration should be alert in the wake of the outbreak of suspected diarrhoea cases in Guntur city, said Minister for Health, Medical and Family Welfare, Vidadala Rajani, during a review meeting in Guntur collectorate on February 11 (Sunday).
She held the review meeting over the death of one person. She inquired about the health condition of the other patients admitted to the Government General Hospital with symptoms of diarrhoea on Saturday.
Expert committee
Stating that the government was yet to establish the reasons for the outbreak, she said that they had constituted a five-member expert committee to identify the cause.
She said that a control room has been set up by the Health Department, which can be reached at 8341396104. The concerned officials have been directed to run the control room round the clock.
The Minister said that the government has been providing alternative, safe drinking water to the affected areas in the city and directed the officials to create awareness among the residents on to only consume purified drinking water.
Door-to-door survey
The government also started a door-to-door survey in the affected areas to identify cases with similar health issues and contain the problem.
Ms Rajani said that they had collected water samples from all the suspected areas and sent them for testing. She said that the patients admitted were from different areas, and hence, the officials were trying to establish the scientific reasons for the outbreak of the suspected diarrhoea cases.
She said that on Sunday, no new patients were admitted with the symptoms in the Guntur Government General Hospital up to noon, indicating that the situation was under control.
