Dengue kills two in Bihar

Patna  :  Two people have died of dengue in Bihar’s Samastipur district and over 100 people from various parts of the state have been admitted to hospitals, an official said Saturday.

Unconfirmed reports say two more people have died of dengue in Purnia district. People in Samastipur, where dengue claimed two lives, are complaining of official apathy.

“The district administration, particularly health officials and the municipal body, has failed to check the spread of dengue,” said Kamla Kant Mahto, relative of a dengue patient from Samastipur undergoing treatment at a private hospital in Patna.

Santosh Kumar, a resident of Samastipur, said people in urban and rural pockets of the district were frightened.

“There is a strong fear that dengue kills people. It is giving people sleepless nights,” Kumar said.

Nearly two dozen people suffering from dengue have been admitted to hospitals in Bhagalpur and over a dozen in Patna.

Bihar Health Minister Ashwani Kumar Choubey has directed officials to take steps to check the spread of dengue. Health department officials said medical experts were also being taken to places where several patients have tested positive for dengue.