Puducherry: The Puducherry government today directed all the government and private hospitals in the Union Territory to compulsorily report dengue cases to the health department here.     

An official release here said all the state-run and privately-managed hospitals in Puducherry should compulsorily notify cases of dengue to the Integrated Disease Surveillance Project (IDSP) attached to the office of the Deputy Director of Public Health.     

It also said the Indira Gandhi Government Medical College hospital should treat the cases of dengue at their level and not refer it to the Indira Gandhi Government General Hospital.     

'Elective surgery' cases can be cancelled and dengue patients be admitted to those beds, it added. The release further said since open dumping of garbage would be a source of mosquito breeding, the provisions for collecting fine from the defaulters should also be implemented.   

There should be intensive focus on diagnosis of dengue cases and diagnostic kits should be available without any shortfall in the primary health and community health centres, it said.     

Bedi and Narayanasamy had made separate visits to he Indira Gandhi Government General hospital yesterday and interacted with patients suffering from dengue fever. 

While the chief minister had asserted that the situation was under control, Bedi had said there was 700 per cent increase in the incidence of dengue since last year and pitched for a 'war' against the fever.     

Bedi had also called for a perspective plan with focus on preventive aspect so that the government machinery would not be caught unawares in the future. PTI