Siddaramaiah calls for action amid spike in dengue cases in Karnataka

Amid a surge in dengue cases in Karnataka, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Monday (September 11) said officials have been told to take steps to prevent its further spread.

In a Facebook post, Siddaramaiah said more than 7,000 dengue cases have been reported across Karnataka in the last few days, with Bengaluru itself accounting for more than 4,000. He also urged people to give utmost priority to cleanliness.

“Spoke to concerned department officials about the rapid spread of dengue, instructed them to take all necessary precautionary measures,” the chief minister said.

He said that in Bengaluru, effective measures were being followed for mosquito control including spraying of medicines, identifying places wherever water is stored and cleaning them. "I request the public to give priority to cleanliness around the house and be careful about mosquito bites.”

Earlier, Karnataka Minister of Health and Family Welfare Dinesh Gundu Rao on Friday launched a disease surveillance dashboard and a mobile application for effective monitoring and curbing of dengue.

The dashboard, a disease forecasting software, has been developed in partnership with the Department of Health, Bengaluru Municipal Corporation, to assist policymakers and public health officials.

According to officials, the dashboard based on the Artificial Intelligence model can predict surge in infections four weeks in advance. A four-week predictive risk map of outbreaks will also be made available to state and district officers.

Both the dashboard and mobile app are focused on dengue, to begin with, and the aim is to expand to additional diseases in the future, said officials.

(With agency inputs)