New Delhi: As many as 1,77,695 cases of dengue and 237 cases of Zika virus have been reported from across the country in 2021 (till December 5), with Uttar Pradesh topping the chart in both with 28,945 dengue cases and 152 Zika virus cases, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said in the Lok Sabha on Friday.
“Zika virus cases have been reported from four states — Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Kerala and Delhi — in 2021. Among these, Uttar Pradesh has reported maximum cases. A total of 8,627 samples were tested of which 152 were found positive, amounting to a positivity rate of 1.7 per cent,” Mandaviya said in a written reply to a query in the Lok Sabha.
“Detection of various diseases, including Zika virus, is monitored through the Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP) under the National Health Mission (NHM) in all the states and Union Territories. Its objective is to detect and respond to outbreaks of epidemic-prone diseases, including vaccine preventable disease. All the Zika virus outbreaks in India have been detected through the IDSP network,” he added.
At present, 132 members of Virus Research & Diagnostic Laboratories (VRDLs) are engaged in ZVD surveillance. Adequate quantity of reagents and test kits are available at these laboratories. Till November 2021, approximately 1,30,000 human serum and urine samples have been screened through this mechanism, Mandaviya said in the reply.
The National Vector Borne Diseases Control Programme (NVBDCP) for prevention and control of six vector-borne diseases, including dengue, is administered by the National Centre for Vector Borne Diseases Control (NCVBDC) under the umbrella scheme of NHM.
Central teams are constituted by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) as and when outbreaks are reported by any state or Union Territory. These teams help the states prepare micro plans for containment of the disease and institute suitable preventive and control measures.
This year, such multidisciplinary teams were deputed in Kerala in July, in Maharashtra in August and in Uttar Pradesh in October.
(IANS)