Written By: Upneet Pansare | Updated : August 22, 2018 9:32 AM IST
With the water receding in flood-hit Kerala, the central health ministry is now tackling with the concern of availability of clean drinking water and medicines and drugs and the likely spread of diseases. The National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has issued health advisories for long-term public health management in Kerala with an effort to prevent the outbreak of waterborne, vector-borne and viral hepatitis diseases. Union Health Minister JP Nadda has also been having high-level meetings with senior officers of #MOHFW, CGHS & NCDC in New Delhi to review the relief measures. A tweet by MOHFW says that all the required medicines are being sent in installments including chlorine tabs, bleaching powder etc and that teams of public health experts, specialist doctors & NCDC experts are ready for deployment.
Over 200 lives have been lost in the floods and about 10 lakhs have been displaced from their homes in Kerala.
JP Nadda said that the situation is being monitored on a daily and that he is in regular communication with Kerala Health Minister KK Shailaja. The Minister said, no outbreak of communicable disease has been reported from the flood-ravaged districts of the state so far.
The Centre has sent 65 tonnes of emergency drugs to check epidemics in Kerala. One crore chlorine tablets have been sent and another crore is in transit. The total request for four crore chlorine tablets will be sent in phases. The Health Ministry has further mobilized 20 tonnes of bleaching powder which is being sent by road, said a statement from the Ministry.
The Ministry has also formed 12 public health teams, one each to be deployed in the 12 worst affected districts in Kerala.
With inputs from IANS
Image: ANI (File pic)
