Following the sudden spurt of dengue cases in southern districts, the director of public health, Porkaipandiya conducted inspections before reassuring people there was no need to panic and that the state has enough stock of medicines.
Over 5,000 dengue cases have been reported and more than 40 deaths have been recorded in the state so far.
Dengue has claimed 30 lives in Tirunelveli and nine in Nagapattinam district. Over 1,111 children were hospitalized on a complaint for high temperature and 400 of them were diagnosed positive for dengue fever in the state.
Reports of major dengue outbreaks in Tirunelveli, Madurai, and Nagapattinam districts, have sent alarm bells ringing in the state.
The health department is intensifying vector and fever surveillance and source reduction activities in these areas.
She appealed to the people to keep their environment clean by removing the stagnation of water and garbage in front of their houses.
“According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), it is the movement of people rather than mosquitoes, which results in dengue transmission.
There is regular movement of people from here to districts and back. We cannot restrict people's movement. Instead we are focussing on vector control activities to reduce the spread of infection,” a senior health official said.
Health inspectors in all the districts have been instructed to conduct fever surveillance and go door to door and interact with people.
If anyone shows signs of dengue, their blood samples are collected and sent to labs for testing and treatment is initiated at government hospitals for those who test positive.