Spread of fever contained: Chandy

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Chief Minister Oommen Chandy has said that spread of fever in the state had been contained and the condition is slowly returning to normalcy.Briefing mediapersons here on Sunday after a special meeting of ministers and Health Department officials held to discuss the issue, Chandy said that the all facilities had been made available at government and private hospitals to deal with fever cases.The government has taken necessary steps to ensure that life-saving drugs are available at all government hospitals.He advised the people to take proper precautions and take treatment when the initial symptoms of the disease appears. Hinting that inept functioning of waste disposal system was behind the rapid spread of the disease, the Chief Minister said that instructions have already been issued to speedily dispose the waste and garbage. “A comprehensive waste disposal mechanism should be evolved at the earliest,” he said.An all-party meeting will be convened on Monday to chart out a plan of action to address the issue. If the situation demands, a special cabinet meeting would be convened in this regard. The indiscriminate use of plastic has added to the problem as the indicrimate use was detrimental to both personal health and ecology.A panel comprising Health Department secretary Rajeev Sadanandan, Urban secretary R K Singh, Pollution Control Board chairman K Sajeevan, Industri es secretary Sreenivasan and Kerala Suchitwa Mission executive director Biju Prabhakar had been assigned to look into the technical and legal issues regarding a total ban on plastic in the state.Chandy said that the government would take all steps to combat the spread of fever.Additional doctors including retired hands would be deployed for this purpose.The list of 4000 doctors awaiting appointment is still pending with the PSC owing to the procedural delay.The Health Secretary has been entrusted with the task of discussing the issue with PSC chairman on a war-footing.The services of community doctors of private hospitals and IMA had already been sought, he said.