KOZHIKODE: Puthiyappa harbour in the city corporation limits has become the hotspot of malaria in the district with 14 cases being reported within a few days. Of the 14 cases, 10 are indigenous and three of the afflicted are migrant labourers who travel by boat regularly because they are fishermen. “More than 500 migrant labourers are working here as fishermen. The disease would have spread from a migrant labourer who returned here after visiting his native place during the trawling ban period,” said Kozhikode district malaria officer K Prakashkumar.
Health officials too make the assumption that the labourer from West Bengal brought malaria to the area. Besides, the harbour provides a fine breeding ground for Anopheles mosquitoes, thus spreading the communicable disease. The habit of coastal men to sleep in the open exacerbates the problem. Also, many of the boatmen sleep in the boat and therefore not available for a health screening. On Monday, the health office continued preventive measures in the area. 64 junior health inspectors carried out a fever survey and special clinics were conducted. Squads visited each household and made people aware. Measures to drain out the stagnant water in unused boats and other spots were also done.
In the first three months of this year, a total 126 cases (up to August 28) were reported as per the data sourced from the Integrated Disease Surveillance Project office here, of which 14 were indigenous cases. “The steep rise in the number of cases is mainly due to the presence of migrant labourers from West Bengal, Jharkhand and Odisha, where a large number of malaria cases have been reported. These migrant workers are the main carriers of the disease,” Mr. Prakashkumar added. A 24-hour control room has been opened at the Beach Hospital to monitor the occurrence, treatment and resistance measures. A person with fever accompanied with symptoms of shivering, nausea and headache should conduct blood tests.
