Bengaluru: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has instructed the officials to initiate measures to reduce the number of dengue cases in the State. Presiding over the meeting with officials at Vidhana Soudha here yesterday, he said that a total of 5,374 cases with five deaths had been reported in the State till yesterday and added that the officials must ensure the fatality does not exceed 0.5 percent as per the guidelines issued by the Central Government.

Stating that the State had recorded 0.09 percent case fatality, lesser than the prescribed guidelines, CM Siddaramaiah expressed his concerns over the increase in the number of  cases reported in Bengaluru, Chikkamagaluru, Mysuru, Haveri, Shivamogga, Chitradurga and Dakshina Kannada districts. “1,230 dengue cases have been reported in BBMP limit,” he said and directed the concerned officials to ensure people diagnosed with dengue were provided with all necessary treatment and medicines at the Government hospitals.

He also instructed the officials to conduct door-to-door survey and to create awareness among the public with the help of ASHA workers, nursing students, NSS students and other volunteers to prevent spread of the disease.

CM also instructed Urban Local Bodies to take necessary measures to avoid accumulation of water. He appealed people to co-operate with officials to control the spread of dengue by destroying the larvae of Aedes aegypti, the mosquito, which not only spreads dengue but also the virus that cause chikungunya, zika fever and yellow fever.