"1 person dies from suspected dengue as cases increase to 717 in Sundargarh, Odisha."
Arpit Pattnaik
The dengue outbreak in Rourkela Industrial Township (RIT) under the Rourkela Steel Plant (RSP) of SAIL continues to worsen. There are unconfirmed reports of a 73-year-old patient from Jagda who has died from the disease at the RSP-run Ispat General Hospital.
The total number of dengue cases in Sundargarh district has surged to 717, up from 107 in the past month. Of these, 584 cases are from Rourkela urban, including the RIT and Rourkela Municipal Corporation (RMC) areas, while the remaining 133 cases are from other parts of the district.
The number of cases in Rourkela urban has jumped from around 90 to 584 within a month. Rourkela ADM and RMC commissioner Ashutosh Kulkarni confirmed the detection of 584 cases in Rourkela urban, with 90 percent originating from various sectors of the RSP. Sectors 1, 14, 15 and 16 remain the primary hotspots. Around 50 cases have been reported within the RMC limits, including areas like Koelnagar and Jagda, mainly as a spillover effect from the RSP sectors.
Kulkarni criticized the RSP’s containment efforts and said they have been insufficient. The city administration has intervened on at least three occasions, deploying executive magistrates and 50 to 100 sanitation and health personnel to the RSP township to eliminate over 1,000 mosquito breeding sites. He stated that the daily case positivity rate in the RIT area has plateaued due to sustained efforts, preventing even higher case numbers.
The RMC has been fighting dengue on a mission mode, with sanitation teams visiting households to destroy breeding sites, applying larvicide and enhancing sanitary services. Bush cutting has been conducted in several open areas, and the next phase will intensify these efforts, covering the backyards of around 500 government quarters.
However, administrative sources said the diversion of resources to the RSP township has compromised dengue containment efforts in the RMC limits. Despite lower dengue cases in the RMC areas, the risk of rapid spread remains high. Sources said the abandoned RSP quarters, clogged drains, stagnant outdoor water, overgrown bushes, and garbage dumps are key contributors to the dengue spread. While the RSP management claims it has initiated measures like spraying larvicide, cutting bushes, and conducting awareness drives, sources argue that these efforts are inadequate and sporadic.
