With casualties due to swine flu mounting up to 108 in Gujarat and 159 new cases of H1N1 viruses across the State, the Gujarat Cabinet on Wednesday decided to increase 1,100 more beds in various Government hospitals and increase staff strength by 1,360 new employees. The State Cabinet also approved 25 new group health cenres and 60 more primary health centre in wake of increasing spread of swine flu in Gujarat. According to the State Government, 10 more died due to the fatal disease on Wednesday including four in Bhavnagar, two in Kheda and one each in Surat, Rajkot, Ahmedabad and Amreli districts. With these, the total number of Swine flu cases reported in different hospitals in the State goes up to 1,075.
Gujarat Chief Secretary DJ Pandian held a video conferencing with Collectors, District Development Officers, Municipal Commissioners and health officials across the State and insisted them to increase vigil and put in more efforts to curb the spread of the disease. The State Government claimed that so far 17 lakh people in Gujarat were surveyed through door-to-door check up campaign in affected district by more than 3,150 medical teams.
Meanwhile in a bizarre incident, 14 H1N1 positive patients fled away from Ahmedabad Civil Hospital on Wednesday. The health department officials expressed worry over possibility of transmission of the virus from them to other people. The health department personnel are trying to trace them in order to admit them in the hospital again.