Japanese Encephalitis kills 2 children; toll at 88

Gorakhpur, Jul 22 (UNI) The vector-borne Japanese Encephalitis today claimed the lives of two children, taking the toll to 88.

Last year, JE had killed almost 1,000 people in UP, while the scourage has accounted for several thousands of lives in the eastern Uttar Pradesh region over the last decade.

Official sources said so far, 394 JE patients had reported at the Baba Raghav Das Medical College here and other district hospitals in the division, of which 88 had died.

In the last 24 hours, 11 fresh JE cases had come to light, while 53 JE patients were still convalescing at various hospitals.

JE patients mostly trickle from Gorakhpur, Maharajganj, Sant Kabirnagar, Deoria, Kushinagar, Basti, Siddharthnagar, Azamgarh, Gonda, Bahraich, Mau, Ballia Ambedkarnagar and Balrampur districts of UP.

Besides, cases from neighbouring state Bihar and country Nepal, of which 11 people and two children had sucummbed so far.

Gorakhpur has the dubious distiction of being the JE epicentre in the region.

The endemic afflicts eastern UP during monsoon every year and continues to take people under its jaws till the onset of winters.

The government undertakes massive vaccination drive against the disease every year, however, the efficacy and penetration of the drive comes under cloud with the mounting toll.

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