There was a time when a disease called encephalitis used to wreak havoc on children every year in the summer and rainy seasons in the districts of Purvanchal. Hundreds of children used to die, thousands of children used to become disabled for life. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has been continuously trying to eradicate this disease since 1996, but he got the opportunity to wage the final war against this disease when he became the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh. After taking oath as CM in 2017, he took the eradication of this disease as a mission and today encephalitis is breathing its last in Uttar Pradesh. Encephalitis is completely under control in Uttar Pradesh and only the announcement of its eradication is pending. However, there was a time when CM Yogi’s efforts to control this disease were also mocked.
In February this year, when Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath arrived at Baba Raghav Das Medical College in Gorakhpur to inaugurate projects, he said in his address, ‘From the 1970s to 2017, governments did not even think about eliminating encephalitis. After becoming the Chief Minister, I thought of preparing a model for the elimination of this disease. In this connection, I went to the Musahar community in Kushinagar and conducted a cleanliness campaign. I explained to them the methods of cleanliness and informed them about the use of soap. Then a media trial was conducted against me for three days. I was ridiculed that a Chief Minister was distributing soap to the poor. But in the Corona epidemic, everyone understood the importance of soap and cleanliness.’
Also read: Stir in political corridors of Uttar Pradesh, PM Modi said something big about CM Yogi!
All the districts of Purvanchal used to face the outbreak of this disease every year
After becoming the Chief Minister, Yogi Adityanath started a special campaign against vector borne and water borne diseases before the onset of monsoon every year. People were made aware about the disease of encephalitis by running the Dastak Abhiyan. All the districts of Purvanchal used to face the outbreak of this disease every year. Patients from Bihar and Nepal used to come to BRD Medical College, Gorakhpur for the treatment of encephalitis. There was a time when every year 1200 to 1500 children used to die due to encephalitis in eastern Uttar Pradesh. In 2017, CM Yogi gave instructions to set up encephalitis treatment centers at primary health centers and community health centers for the treatment of encephalitis affected children.
Along with this, the system of Baba Raghav Das Medical College, which had been in the news for many years for encephalitis cases and deaths due to it, was also strengthened. A dedicated encephalitis hospital and block was set up in BRD Medical College. Encephalitis wards were made and doctors were arranged in every district’s primary health center and district hospital. The result of this was that the number of patients of Japanese encephalitis and acute encephalitis syndrome gradually decreased due to the treatment given to the patients at the primary level. Uttar Pradesh also saw the day in 2017 when 67 children died due to disruption of oxygen supply in Gorakhpur’s BRD Medical College. This incident shook the whole country.
Also read: Political conflict over Sultanpur encounter! CM Yogi hits back at Akhilesh
Due to the efforts of CM Yogi, this disease is breathing its last in UP
If we look at the data about this disease in BRD Medical College between the year 2020 and August 2024, then in the year 2020, there were 57 deaths in 565 cases of Acute Encephalitis Syndrome and 5 deaths in 57 cases of Japanese Encephalitis. At the same time, in 2021, 81 deaths were recorded in 581 cases of AES and 2 deaths in 57 cases of JE. Similarly, in 2022, there were 28 deaths in 238 cases of AES and 3 deaths in 22 cases of JE. In the year 2023, there were 17 deaths in 319 cases of AES and 0 deaths in 43 cases of JE. In August 2024, there were 9 deaths in 60 cases of AES and 5 deaths in 10 cases of JE. That is, the effect of both Acute Encephalitis Syndrome and Japanese Encephalitis has reduced a lot. Cases are continuously decreasing.
Finance Minister of Uttar Pradesh Government Suresh Khanna had informed the House in the recent budget session that encephalitis disease had been a big problem for a long time, but it has improved a lot in the last few years. There has been a 76 percent reduction in the number of acute encephalitis syndrome patients and a 98 percent reduction in mortality rate, while there has been an 85 percent reduction in the number of Japanese encephalitis patients and a 96 percent reduction in mortality rate. According to a report by the National Center for Biotechnology Information, encephalitis disease was first reported in Uttar Pradesh during October and November in 1978. That year more than 3500 cases were reported and 1100 patients died.
Also read: Akhilesh Yadav’s big mistake of making bulldozer an issue again, may cost Yogi heavily in UP by-elections
The most devastating outbreak of encephalitis was seen in Gorakhpur district in 2005, when 6061 cases and 1500 deaths were reported. This was followed by 2320 cases and 528 deaths in 2006. In 2007, 3024 cases and 645 deaths were reported. As a result, the Japanese Encephalitis Vaccination Program was started in 2006 and became part of the National Immunization Program in 2014. Under this vaccination program, the vaccine is made available in 179 districts of 9 states where the disease is more fatal. Acute encephalitis syndrome mainly affects children and young adults.
Chief Minister Yogi has been very sensitive about this disease
Due to AES, the patient gets high fever and there is also a risk of many types of neurological problems like mental confusion or coma. Similarly, Japanese encephalitis is a mosquito-borne viral infection. There is a risk of it spreading to humans due to the bite of mosquitoes infected with the virus. This virus can also infect horses and pigs. Talking about humans, children are more at risk of getting infected with Japanese encephalitis. Japanese encephalitis is also called brain fever in the local language. This disease spreads due to dirt and impure drinking water or waterlogging. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath was very sensitive about this disease since he was the MP of Gorakhpur. After becoming the Chief Minister, he launched a special campaign for the eradication of this disease, the results of which are beginning to show.
Source (PTI) (NDTV) (HINDUSTANTIMES)