No new cases of diarrhoea in Gurla: govt.

The Health, Medical and Family Welfare Department on Monday said no new cases of diarrhoea were reported from Gurla in Vizianagaram district on October 21 and 22.

So far, more than 140 people have been hospitalised. In a statement on October 20, Sunday, Special Chief Secretary (Health) M.T. Krishna Babu said Public Health Director Padmavathi is stationed in Gurla to monitor the situation and a team is formed to look into the causes of the outbreak and submit a report to the government.

He said samples of drinking water sent for tests were found contaminated. “Open defecation could have contaminated the ground water. We cannot rule out cross contamination of pipelines too,” he said.

He added that there has been one confirmed death in the mandal due to diarrhoea, while all other cases had other conditions.

Published - October 22, 2024 08:48 am IST