Mamata Banerjee breaks silence on dengue toll: 11 deaths

The first official data from the state government on deaths since the vector-borne disease suffered a surge throughout Bengal in 2022, chief minister Mamata Banerjee revealed in the Assembly on Wednesday that 11 people perished from dengue this year.

“Eleven people have already passed away from dengue this year, including six in public hospitals. During the Covid-19 period, dengue cases were not many over the previous two years. There have been more dengue cases this year. To reduce dengue cases in the state, the health and urban development departments are collaborating, according to Mamata.

A day after BJP lawmakers left the Assembly in protest of the sharp increase in dengue cases in the state, Speaker Biman Banerjee rejected an adjournment petition put forth by the opposition.

BJP MLAs, particularly the leader of the opposition in the House, Suvendu Adhikari, accused Mamata Banerjee of failing to appear in the House to brief it on the dengue situation.

At least six Bengali districts, including Calcutta, saw a sharp increase in dengue infections, but the state health authorities kept quiet about the toll. Although dengue was listed as the cause of death in many cases by numerous institutions, both government and private, health officials did not formally make the statistics public.

Leaders of the opposition charged Mamata with hiding the death toll.

The state government is a skilled at concealing data. They carried this out during COVID-19. BJP Chief Whip Manoj Tigga stated, “We want the state administration to disclose the genuine picture on dengue deaths.

Sujan Chakraborty, the head of the CPM, charged that the state government had withheld dengue data. More than 11 people, according to him, perished from the illness.

“We have information from reliable sources that this season, dengue has claimed at least 75 lives. The chief minister’s allegation of only 11 is unexpected, Chakraborty remarked.

In the Assembly, Mamata acknowledged that the number of dengue cases increased significantly this year and said that it would decrease once the temperature dropped.

Although dengue infections rose this year, the disease is currently under control. Particularly in Calcutta, Howrah, Hooghly, North, and South 24-Parganas, cases increased. Till the next month, the government won’t let up on its efforts to control dengue. I’ll ask every MLA to exercise caution. Don’t worry, she urged.

This year, the state experienced slightly more than 60,000 dengue cases, which is a five-year high. Although the positive rate was 12.7% up until earlier this month, a health official claimed the downward trend had already begun.

The Opposition launched criticisms of Mamata’s administration’s “mismanagement of public health management system” in response to the sharp increase in dengue cases this year.

In a letter dated November 7 to Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari pleaded for prompt government action to protect the Bengali people from the “mismanaged dengue emergency.”

BJP leaders have been criticising Mamata in recent weeks, armed with Bharati Pravin Pawar’s claim that the Bengal government was withholding dengue statistics from the Center.

The BJP praised Mamata’s “constant mobility” after she appeared in the Assembly on Wednesday carrying dengue data.

Sujan Chakraborty, the head of the CPM, charged that the state government had withheld dengue data. More than 11 people, according to him, perished from the illness.

“We have information from reliable sources that this season, dengue has claimed at least 75 lives. The chief minister’s allegation of only 11 is unexpected, Chakraborty remarked.

In the Assembly, Mamata acknowledged that the number of dengue cases increased significantly this year and said that it would decrease once the temperature dropped.

Although dengue infections rose this year, the disease is currently under control. Particularly in Calcutta, Howrah, Hooghly, North, and South 24-Parganas, cases increased. Till the next month, the government won’t let up on its efforts to control dengue. I’ll ask every MLA to exercise caution. Don’t worry, she urged.

This year, the state experienced slightly more than 60,000 dengue cases, which is a five-year high. Although the positive rate was 12.7% up until earlier this month, a health official claimed the downward trend had already begun.

The Opposition launched criticisms of Mamata’s administration’s “mismanagement of public health management system” in response to the sharp increase in dengue cases this year.

In a letter dated November 7 to Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari pleaded for prompt government action to protect the Bengali people from the “mismanaged dengue emergency.”

BJP leaders have been criticising Mamata in recent weeks, armed with Bharati Pravin Pawar’s claim that the Bengal government was withholding dengue statistics from the Center.

The BJP praised Mamata’s “constant mobility” after she appeared in the Assembly on Wednesday carrying dengue data.

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