Malaria epidemic in Tripura: 44 dead

Hilly tribal villagers of Tripura, a Northeastern State of India, is reeling under malaria menace while the menace is spreading in plains too. Despite efforts by the State Health Department, malaria menace is escalating in Tripura and spreading from hilly tribal hamlets to plain areas affecting more people. With the on-set of rainy season, the disease surfaced in the far-flung hilly tribal hamlets of Gandachhera and Longtharai sub-division under Dhalai district in Tripura. After visiting the worst affected areas of Health Minister of the State Badal Choudhury informed on June 18, total 44 people died so far, out of which 28 died due to malaria while causes are yet to be ascertained for remaining 16 persons. He added, around 2000 people, mostly tribal, are infected with malaria. The worrying fact of this menace is that most of victims who died from Malaria are children below 10 years of age.  

Notably, malaria broke out this time despite having total 131 sub-health centres, 12 Primary Health Care Centers, 3 Sub-divisional and 1 District Hospitals in the affected district. However, all of these are Though Government claims that all the health care centers and ASHA (village level health volunteer) workers are active in the areas, people of Gandachhera and Longtharai alleged that health care delivery systems in these areas were in pathetic conditions. Shortage of Doctors and utter negligence by medical personnel in initiating preventive care are ‘hallmark’ of these health care centers. Frustrated with fragile infrastructure and absence of medical personnel in the health care centers, witchcraft is only ‘dependable’ option available to tribal people in case of health problems. Lack of medical help at the beginning of the problem is cited to be one of the main reasons behind malaria outbreak.

Accepting the allegation, State Health Minister stated on June 18 that preventive steps like spraying DDT had stopped two years ago after the Dept of Environment raised serious reservation against DDT spraying. Errant medical health workers have been suspended, he informed. Initiatives to spray DDT in all of the 216 tribal hamlets in Gandachhera have been started. Apart from spraying DDT, awareness programmes have been lunched in co-operation with grass root health workers. Experts’ teams from Agartala also pressed into service. As patients are overflowing in all of the health care centers, arrangements to treat the patients in makeshift centers, located at Government offices, have been made.