7 die in 15 days due to viral fever in Uttarakhand’s Almora

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A viral fever in the Dhauladevi block of Uttarakhand’s Almora district has led to the deaths of at least seven people in the past two weeks. The latest fatality was a 70-year-old villager who died due to viral fever on Friday.

According to a report by The Times of India, the latest death has deepened concerns among locals, who said that fever cases are rapidly on the rise in several villages. Ganga Dutt Joshi, a resident of Bibdi village, died due to high fever on Friday.

Villager Ganesh Pandey told TOI that Joshi was forced to seek treatment outside the block as the road connecting Bibdi village to Dhauladevi Community Health Centre was closed for over a month due to the damage.

Two days ago, Madan Ram of Kabhdi village died due to a viral fever. He had been admitted to Base Hospital in Almora and was being referred to Haldwani when he passed away before the transfer could take place. Earlier, Asha worker Hansi Bhatt from Jageshwar, Pandit Shailendra Pandey from Kheti, and Govind Singh Khani from Naini Bajela had also died, all experiencing a sharp drop in platelet counts during treatment.

Health department launches door-to-door screening

The health department launched a door-to-door screening drive in the affected villages. Four medical teams visited the area on Saturday and examined over 100 residents.

Chief medical officer (CMO) NC Tiwari was quoted as saying that water samples were collected from several locations to identify possible sources of infection. "Another round of medical teams will be sent on Monday for house-to-house survey and medical check-up," the CMO added.