The step was taken after jaundice was detected in 20 persons, who
attended a marriage function last week. The department has also directed
its field staff to keep a tight vigil in the district and conduct
inspection at marriage functions and festival venues to ensure that the
water being used to cook food is hygienic.

They will ensure
that 6,500 wells in the district are properly chlorinated. The
department has also formed a squad to check the quality of drinking
water being supplied by the private parties to various parts of the
district. The department has also urged the public to report about the
holding of any functions and festivals where food is being served to
ensure the safety of the public at least one week in advance.The health
staff will chlorinate the water used to prepare food for drinking after
conducting inspection.

The chances of spreading waterborne diseases
such as diarrhoea, cholera and jaundice are very high if the public
consume unhygienic water. The health department has taken the preventive
measures to avoid outbreak of waterborne diseases with the rising
mercury level and scarcity of drinking water that has been forcing
people to depend on water supplied by private parties.

Kuttiady
grama panchayat president K K Nafeesa said that the panchayat will hold
an inter-department meeting on March 5 to chalk out a plan to tackle
the jaundice cases in the border areas of the panchayat.

Additional district medical officer Dr M K Appunny said that the
department has directed the LSG bodies concerned to begin regular
inspections to avoid outbreak of waterborne diseases. “PWe are expecting
cases of diarrhoea, typhoid and jaundice in the coming days. Only
preventive measures and public cooperation would help to bring down the
numbers,” he said. The public can directly contact the health staff in
their respective areas to carry out free chlorination of water bodies to
ensure that they give safe drinking water. Those who conduct functions
should distribute only boiled water to the guests,” he said.

Kozhikode corporation
health standing committee chairperson Janamma Kunjunni said that the
civic body has been distributing chlorinated water to public from the
two reservoirs of Mananchira and Neelachira. “A meeting will be held on
March 4 with health inspectors to chalk out steps to curb the spreading
of water borne diseases.

We have also decided to seek the help
of district administration to put up a mechanism in place to check the
quality of drinking water supplied by private parties as the civic body
lacks resources to do the same,” said Kunjunni.