Woman dies of dengue, daughter in hospital

KOLKATA: The family of Rajani Banerjee, who died of dengue on Saturday, lives in fear and anger. They are scared because the dengue victim's teenaged daughter too has been detected with dengue and is undergoing treatment in the same hospital where her mother, a teacher by profession, died.
However, the family alleged that the civic body didn't take any measures to check the onslaught at Ashok Avenue Government Housing in Netaji Nagar, where they reside.They alleged that the housing society has been reeling under dengue menace since September beginning.
“The government has been claiming that there is no dengue problem. But, I have lost my daughter for no fault of hers,“ said Provat Sarkar, Rajani's father. Rajani (41) was admitted to Apollo Gleneagles Hospitals on October 3. The English teacher died on Saturday morning. Her daughter Archi, a Class-XI student, was also admitted to the same hospital on Friday. “My daughter's condition is stable.But the fact that she had tested positive for dengue two years ago remains a cause of concern,“ said her father Samiran Banerjee.
The family lives on the first floor of H block in the housing complex. At least five persons in the seven-flat block have been affected by dengue so far. Two, including Archi, are in hospital. “Instead of hiding the dengue reality, the civic body should have started alerting people about the onslaught. If they had done their job properly, I would not have lost my daughter,“ said Rajani's mother Shyamali Sarkar.
In September first week, Satyaki Ghosh, a Class-XI student who lives on the third floor of H block, tested positive for dengue. Though the boy has recovered, his mother Barnali (41) was admitted to a Dhakuria hospital on Saturday. “The civic body should have pressed the panic button right after my grandson tested positive in September beginning,“ said Ira Ghosh, Barnali's motherin-law. College teacher Partha Pratim, who lives bang opposite the Banerjees on the first floor, was discharged from BP Poddar hospital only on October 2 after three days of hospitalization for dengue.
The housing complex that has 64 flats in its eight blocks currently accommodates 52 families. Situated in ward number 98, the complex has witnessed dengue onslaught earlier too. In fact, Rajani's daughter had tested positive for dengue two years ago.
There's a garbage dump beside the H block. Plastic sheets covering the roofs of makeshift garages beside the block have become breeding grounds for mosquitoes. According to the residents, councillor Mrityunjoy Chakraborty visited the spot on Saturday supervising the demolition of the garages and removal of garbage.
Times View
Dengue has now struck in the north (Dum Dum, Baguiati), east (Salt Lake), southeast (along the Eastern Metropolitan Bypass), south (Dhakuria, Tollygunge) and southwest (Behala). The only region where deaths have not occurred is the heart of old Kolkata (from Shyambazar to Chowringhee-Park Street). Has the anti-vector drive been done better in this belt? Is there any lesson to learn from this?