The cases of vector disease chikungunya has increased in alarming proportion in the national Capital as a laboratory at AIIMS has recorded nearly 900 positive cases of the disease in the past two months. On the other hand, Safdarjung Hospital has reported about 500 cases of chikungunya till Thursday. Health experts are of the view that city healthcare is reeling with severe crisis with cases of chikungyunya, dengue and malaria on the rise.
The spike in chikungunya cases in Delhi and other parts of north India, has come nearly ten years after a big outbreak of the mosquito-borne disease across the country. In Delhi dengue has claimed nine lives so far and infected about 800 patients.
Several hospitals are reporting increasing cases of chikungunya, including at Safdarjung Hospital where three deaths due to dengue and one due to malaria have taken place this season.
"At our AIIMS laboratories, 885 chikungunya blood test samples have tested positive in the last two months (July-August). Cases are rising and more and more people are getting affected," said Dr lalit Dar of Department of Microbiology at AIIMS, adding cases are likely to rise further as the season peaks in September.