Health and Family Welfare Minister Zahid Maleque has said the country has seen a fivefold increase in the number of dengue patients in the country this year compared to the last year.

“Around 1,700 dengue cases have been reported in the past five months till May 28 and 13 people died during this period,” he said while addressing a press briefing on the Covid-19 vaccination at the Health and Family Welfare Ministry on Monday.

The dengue survey report has already been submitted to the two city corporations of Dhaka to control the Aedes mosquito, the vector of dengue, in a bid to check the outbreak of the deadly disease, he said.

Maleque said separate dengue wards and corners have been set up in hospitals and 2,500 physicians and nurses have been given training to tackle the dengue situation.

“We’ve engaged people from different strata, including teachers, students and military personnel, to make people aware of dengue,” he said, urging people to keep their respective houses and surroundings clean, keep spraying chemicals for eliminating mosquitoes and maintain a healthy life.

Meanwhile, the country’s dengue situation is deteriorating day by day with an increase in the number of patients just at the beginning of the Aedes mosquito breeding monsoon.           The DGHS said 72 new dengue patients were admitted to different hospitals across the country, including Dhaka, in the last 24 hours till Monday morning. However, no death was reported during the period.

It said a total of 226 dengue patients are currently undergoing treatment throughout the country. Of them, 198 are receiving treatment in Dhaka city alone.

The report further said 1,843 dengue cases have so far been detected and 13 died in the country in the current year.