At least three persons died in Dhaka and Lakshmipur and 2263 contracted diarrhoeal diseases on Monday, according to the health services directorate general control room and the ICDDR,B. The number of people dying of diarrhoeal diseases and such patients is still on the rise after waterborne diseases rapidly spread across the country because of contaminated water and humid weather. One died of the disease and 626 received treatment at the International Centre for Dia-rrhoeal Diseases Research, Bangladesh hospital on Monday, according to the DGHS control room.

Diarrhoeal Diseases Number of patients on rise The number of the patients undergoing treatment for diarrhoeal diseases shows sharp rise this week. Around 1319 people sought treatment at different hospitals across the country from Saturday morning to yesterday morning, according to the control room of Directorate General of Health Services. International Centre for Diarrhoeal Diseases and Research, Bangladesh (ICDDR,B), the lone specialised hospital for diarrhoeal diseases in the country, experienced 650 patients yesterday, which was 699 on Saturday and 656 on Friday.

A three-month-old boy, which was administered vaccine on Wednesday died on Saturday The child's parents alleged that death was due to vaccination while the Health Department declared it to be death due to diarrhoea.

Three more people were reported dead due to antric in the border area of Hailakandi district. With this the total death toll have risen to 20. Secretary, Hailakandi District Tribal Sangha has said to reporters that one Rejaring Tripura (29) of Kondanala village has died due to antric yesterday. Sources added that two children have lost their lives due to same reason within the last 24 hours.

With the onset of summer and rise in mercury gastroenteritis has again struck the areas, which lack access to clean drinking water, with more than 100 patients reporting at the Nawabshah Medical College Hospital (NMCH) and other health centres during last 24 hours. On an average, 40-50 gastroenteritis patients report daily at the NMCH for a couple of days. A gastroenteritis patient complains of vomiting and diarrhoea or cramps.

The incidence of waterborne diseases is on the rise in the state. In all, 917 cases of acute diarrhoea were reported from the city in the last four months, of which 80 were detected in the last one week. In this context, the task force of the health department held a meeting and decided to take steps to prevent contamination of water and food. In Anantapur district, 98 cases of acute diarrhoea were reported in the past one week. Waterborne diseases were also reported from Putlur of the same district.

President of Hailakandi District Tribal Sangha, Rajendra Reang has alleged that although Gastroenteritis, locally called antric disease has become an epidemic in the Mizoram border area of Hailakandi district, the district administration has taken no effective steps to contain the situation. Reang alleged that already more than 17 persons including women and children have lost their lives due to antric.

President of Hailakandi District Tribal Sangha, Rajendra Reang, has alleged that although gastroenteritis has taken an epidemic form along the Mizoram border area of Hailakandi district, the district administration has taken no effective steps to contain the situation. Reang alleged that already more than 17 persons, including women and children, have lost their lives. Though the State Health Department of Hailakandi has shown some initiative in this aspect, the Joint Director of the department Dr Samir Kumar Das told that he was only aware of the death of four persons due to the disease.

The wards and the OPD of the district hospital, Matale are full of patients who are victims of the viral flu which is fast spreading in the Matale district. Among the patients are victims of rat fever, chikungunya, dengue, diarrhoea and infections like the viral flu. The patients are from the villages coming under the Municipal Council, Matale who are members of the same family, pregnant women, government servants and children under the age of 12 years.

Health professionals stressing the need for structural reforms in the health care system of Pakistan called for a basic policy shift from treatment and cure-oriented system to the adoption of a prevention-based approach. They were speaking at an inaugural-cum-plenary session of the 45th annual medical symposium of the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC) held here on Monday. This year's theme of the moot is "Health for the underprivileged'. The health experts also explicitly discussed the co-relation between poverty and health.