Till August 15, the number was almost half at 500 patients. While the authorities claim that each patient is being carefully attended, an 11-year-old was not admitted in the District Hospital on Thursday. Deepak Kumar’s father Ashok Kumar was forced to leave his shivering son unattended in the hospital portico, while he went to purchase the medicines.

A resident of Lalpur under Akbarpur Block, Ashok told The Indian Express, “For the last three days, my son has been suffering with viral fever but the hospital authorities refused to admit him.” The doctors prescribed some medicines and advised me to take Deepak back home, he added.

Chief Medical Superintendent, Dr O N Pandey said, “We have 75 beds in the hospital and all are occupied. Only serious patients are admitted and others are referred to primary health centres.” He, however, claimed that majority of the patients coming to the hospital are affected with either malaria or viral fever. 

More than 250 casualties have been reported in the district during this period. But the authorities claimed that only 21 deaths were caused due to viral fever. According to official records, 124 people have died in the last 30 days, of which, 103 deaths were caused by malaria, jaundice and other water and vector-borne diseases.

Viral fever, which was first reported in Thadwara and Pulandar, has now spread across to 400 villages under the blocks of Akbarpur, Amraudha, Malasa and Dherapur. The district authorities, however, claim that only 136 villages were affected by the disease and only a few cases have been detected in other areas.

Several villagers expressed displeasure over the indifferent attitude of the authorities. Balram Mishra, brother-in-law of a patient Rekha (15), was annoyed with the medical teams that were visiting various villages. “The team did not visit our village to treat the patients but were enjoying themselves. After taking snacks, they examined Rekha for a few seconds and gave a medicine, which failed to improve her condition,” said the resident of Mahona village. With her condition deteriorating, we had to rush her to the Lala Lajpat Rai Hospital in Kanpur, he added.

Pappi, a Mungisapur resident, has been admitted in the district hospital. Her husband, Satendra Kumar said, “No one in the hospital is willing to listen to our grievances. Doctors have not even told us the cause of my wife’s sickness.”

The first death reported in the district due to viral fever was of Thadwara resident, Ankit (7). Today, his father Jagdish has viral fever, mother has been tested positive for malaria and his 8-year-old sister is also in the grip of viral fever. Jagdish said, “If district authorities are claiming that things are all right, why is my entire family suffering from viral fever and malaria?” He claimed that only when the diseases had spread to over 400 villages, the authorities had woken up to the menace.

District Magistrate Rama Shankar Sahu said, “Unwarranted panic has been created in the district and the situation is under control.” He pointed out that 54 doctors of Kanpur Dehat and 45 doctors from the division are operating in the affected areas. “A team of 13 doctors from Kanpur City arrived in the district on Thursday,” added the DM.

Sahu claimed that fogging is being carried out in the affected villages. “Nearly 25 water tankers are providing clean drinking water to villagers and 25 officials have been deployed to take stock of the situation at the affected villages,” he added. “Majority of the deaths in the district are natural deaths,” said Sahu.