Amid allegations that officials were trying to hide the real number of affected persons, the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court Monday ordered the Tamilnadu government to submit a report on the number of deaths caused by swine flu and dengue by November 20. It is being claimed that though a large number of people were affected by the two ailments, officials were covering it up. Hence, this order has come at the right time.

Besides issuing the notice to the State Health Secretary, a bench of Justice K K Sasidharan and Justice P D Audikesavalu also sought details about the number of people affected by the two viral fevers caused by mosquitoes and contagious infection and the steps taken by the government to contain them. The order was passed when the judges were hearing a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by social worker Ramesh seeking a direction to the government to take steps on a war-footing to contain the spread of the fevers.

In the recent past, fevers such as swine flu, dengue and chikungunya have been spreading in the State, and several people have died. Deaths of people suffering from dengue and swine flu or H1N1 have been reported from several parts of the State in the past few weeks. Though the government has taken steps to control the spread of the diseases, more needs to be done and the actual number of affected persons should be revealed. Also, special wards should be set up in government hospitals to treat patients affected by the fevers and adequate stock of medicines should be ensured.