Adding to the problems of the district administration, six out of nine patients suffering from the mysterious disease admitted at Sadar Hospital in Simdega allegedly ran away due to lack of facilities available in the hospital. Though, Chief Secretary Sajal Chakraverty has said that the situation is completely under control in Simdega as the district administration along with the health department have taken all preventive measures to check the disease spread further in the Area. “We were not given proper food and had to drink running water from the tap which was quite unhygienic,” a runaway patient Surjan Budding was quoted as saying.
At least seven persons died mysteriously in the last few days in Simdega due to a mysterious disease. The health authorities suspected that Anthrax — one of the deadly bacteria — could be the reason behind these deaths. The district administration taking quick action, had quarantined eight afflicted persons separately in the hospital in order to check the bacteria to spread further among the people.
Chief Secretary Sajal Chakraverty, who visited Simdega on Thursday to take stock of the preventive measure being taken in the affected area, said that the symptom s found in the persons suffering from the disease suggests it to be Anthrax. Still, needed to wait for the lab reports, he added.
“The situation is more or less under control as people living in the area are being given full doze of three types of antibiotic medicines as a precautionary measure to check spreading it to others,” said Chakraverty.
According to Chakraverty, the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has been asked to take the charge along with a best possible team of animal epidemic experts to scan the area and find out the place where the disease spread into the bodies of the cattle.
“The disease spread among the villagers who had eaten the meat of an ox which died suddenly at Kuruchdega Toli in Simdega, those who processed the meat were infected while those who ate it did not get infected,” said the CS.
The administration, on the other hand, have directed the villagers not to bury the dead cattle, instead, cremate the animals dying in the area, said Chakraverty. Charkraverty also said that the villagers have strictly been directed not to cut the dead animal for any reason.
“Medical team has regularly been camping in the area taking all precautionary measures in order to check the disease spreading among others. “We are looking to it that their belongings like clothes, beds and blankets must be burnet so that the bacteria if present get killed with it,” Chakraverty added.
The Chief Secretary visited the infected village on Thursday to take stock of the measures taken by the district administration to prevent the disease from spreading further in the area.