Maharashtra govt to form 5-member committee to probe swine flu deaths

Mumbai: Maharashtra Health Minister Dr Deepak Sawant on Wednesday announced that a five-member committee will be formed in every municipal area to investigate deaths due to swine flu in private hospitals.

Sawant made the announcement after holding a review meeting with the health officials and MLAs from Thane, Pune and other areas.

"The committee will audit each case of swine flu death and all the other diseases or symptoms will be collectively assessed. Each municipal corporation and council will have such a committee, which will collect the data for analysis," Sawant said.

The committee will find out the causes behind the death and confirm whether it was caused due to swine flu or any other reason, Sawant said.

In a bid to curb the swine flu deaths, which has seen a rise in some parts of the state, including Thane, Pune and Nashik, Sawant convened a meeting at the Vidhan Bhavan in Mumbai. Minister Vijay Deshmukh, MLA Sanjay Kelkar, Vijay Kale, principal secretary for health Pradeep Vyas and director Dr Satish Pawar were present.

In the state, 338 swine flu deaths were reported (so far in 2017). Out of the total number of deceased, five hailed from Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh. Out of the total, 37 deaths were reported in Nashik, followed by 31 from Pune city and 23 from rural. The H1N1 infection has claimed 24 deaths in Nagpur and Aurangabad, while 21 died in Thane.

The infection claimed four lives in Mira-Bhayandar and Vasai-Virar MC, while three died in Navi Mumbai. Of the five deaths, three patients were from Karnataka, while two others from Madhya Pradesh, Sawant said.

There are currently 3,181 people in the state who have been infected with swine flu. Of these, 2,036 cases were detected in June and July. As many as 108 deaths were reported in these months and 56 deaths are in Mumbai and Thane, said the health minister.

"The state government has taken necessary steps to prevent the spread of swine flu. In the past seven months, 31,000 people have been vaccinated," he said.