Child dies of diphtheria, more fall ill in Odisha’s Rayagada
State govt. orders inquiry after five deaths; directs officials to provide drinking water supply to the interior village and lay a motorable road
The Odisha government has directed the Health Department and the Regional Medical Research Centre (RMRC) to probe the reasons for the suspected diphtheria outbreak in Manuspadar village in Odisha’s Rayagada district.
Five children had died in the interior village in a span of 13 days in June. The RMRC confirmed that the fifth death was caused by diphtheria, a bacterial infection. The RMRC, Bhubaneswar, comes under the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR).
The government said the first four cases were not brought to any health facility or to [the notice of any] health worker, and the bodies were cremated at the community level. “But they are suspected to be cases of diphtheria,” the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) said in a statement.
Another nine persons, mostly children, have been affected by the disease.
Manuspadar is situated in Kashipur block of Rayagada district, which was infamous for diarrhoeal disease outbreaks in the past. The village is difficult to access. Doctors and health workers can reach the village only after walking five km and crossing a stream.
Door-to-door screening
Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi reviewed the situation and directed officials to take steps to bring the situation to normal. According to the CMO statement, the Panchayati Raj Department has been directed to provide drinking water supply and construct a motorable road to the place at the earliest.
“A team from State Health Department visited the village and camped there. It has done necessary investigations, door-to-door screening and treatment,” the CMO said. A prophylactic dose of antibiotics has been given to all susceptible persons in the community, it said.
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