Central team visits Birbhum after success in anti-filaria campaign
The Statesman | 30 May 2025
Birbhum district has achieved the highest success rate in the state in its fight against filariasis, having administered anti-filarial tablets to approximately 85 per cent of the population in affected areas. In recognition of this achievement, a central team of health officials from New Delhi visited the district to inspect and verify the success of the programme.
The objective of the central team was to understand the factors behind Birbhum’s impressive performance in combating the mosquito-borne disease.
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The delegation included three officials from the health ministry, two representatives from the World Health Organization (WHO), and six members from various health-related NGOs. As part of their assessment, they visited primary health centres in Rajnagar and Suri-I blocks.
Dr Subhabrata Ghosh, chief medical officer of health (CMoH) for Birbhum, stated that the central team not only interacted with local residents to assess the disease’s impact but also visited several filariasis-affected villages and health centres.
“Birbhum is known to be a hotspot for filariasis, a mosquito-borne disease. The most affected areas in the district include Khoyrasole, Dubrajpur, Suri-I, and Rajnagar Blocks,” Dr Ghosh said.
Mrinal Ghosh, additional chief medical officer of health (ACMoH) and coordinator of the mass drug administration campaign, reported that nearly 85 per cent of the targeted population of 5,20,000 in these four blocks had already received the anti-filarial tablets.
“We have been raising awareness through public address systems and encouraging people to attend health centres for mass drug consumption. The district health department has been distributing the oral tablets free of charge across the four high-risk blocks,” he said.
“In addition, blood samples have been collected from residents during night hours for monitoring,” he added, noting that a specialty clinic for filariasis patients was recently inaugurated at Suri Sadar Hospital.
Filariasis is caused by thread-like parasitic worms of the Filarioidea family, transmitted through mosquito bites. The disease can lead to several debilitating conditions, including lymphatic filariasis, commonly known as elephantiasis—a neglected tropical disease.