New Delhi, No new measles case was reported from Madhya Pradesh’s Balaghat district over the last seven days, indicating an encouraging improvement in the situation following intensified surveillance, vaccination, treatment and preventive measures, Union health ministry officials said on Saturday.
Treatment facilities at the Songudda Primary Health Centre and other centres have been strengthened with additional beds, medicines, medical officers, laboratory support, infection-prevention measures and isolation arrangements. A temporary hospital at Kundekasa has also been providing treatment as required. The available evidence indicates multiple clinical circumstances, including measles, malaria, measles-malaria co-infection, respiratory distress, dehydration, malnutrition, anaemia and shock, they added.
So far, 32,433 people have been medically examined and 431 children referred to and admitted to health facilities, the officials said. Of them, 379 children have been treated and discharged, while 52 remain under treatment and observation. As part of the outbreak-response immunisation, 14,637 children aged one to 10 years have received an additional measles-rubella vaccine dose, irrespective of their previous vaccination status.
The Centre and the state government continue to closely monitor the situation, with a particular focus on vulnerable tribal and PVTG communities and ensuring early detection, timely treatment, immunisation, disease prevention and last-mile access to healthcare, the officials said.
A National Joint Outbreak Response Team was deployed to Balaghat on August 12 to strengthen the multidisciplinary response, while national health institutions, including the Indian Council of Medical Research , have been supporting the investigation. The surveillance network has now been expanded from three villages to around 50, with more than 10 doctors and 10 community health officers deployed continuously for screening and treatment.
