A 23-year-old jawan of the Manipur Rifles died of dengue at Moreh, India’s gateway to the South East Asian countries on Monday. Sanabam Bungcha, was attached to the fifth battalion of the Indian Reserve Battalion (IRB) and was stationed at the border district of Tengnoupal when he got infected with the vector-borne disease. He died on Monday morning due to dengue shock syndrome.
Sanabam Bungcha, a native of Manipur's Thoubal district's Yairipok Yambem, is the state's first Dengue casualty this year. After being infected with the disease, Bungcha was admitted to a primary health centre in the remote town.
Bungcha could not be evacuated to a hospital in Imphal due to the ongoing violence and blockade of road by protestors.
This year, at least 113 cases of dengue have been detected in Manipur.
Last year, 503 Dengue cases were registered in the state. Of the 16 districts of the state, Imphal West district reported the highest number of vector-borne disease. The state had reported 359 cases of dengue in 2019.
All possible measures have been taken up by the state health department to control the spread of the disease in the state.
Surveillance teams have been sent to the infected areas and awareness measures are being taken up alongside regular fogging.
The health department has appealed to people not to panic as dengue can be prevented by taking simple measures.
What Is Dengue Fever?
Dengue fever is a viral disease spread by mosquitos that is caused by the dengue virus (DEN V). The virus is primarily spread by the bite of the Aedes mosquito, which is common in tropical and subtropical climates throughout Asia, Central and South America, Africa, and the Pacific Islands. Dengue viruses are classified into four types, and infection with any of them can result in a fatal fever. Unlike other viruses, Dengue is not contagious from person to person, except when passed from a pregnant woman to her unborn child.