New Delhi, Sep 5 (PTI) 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.
The Centre and the Madhya Pradesh government have been working in close coordination since reports of a cluster of fever, fever with rash and associated deaths emerged from tribal habitations of Birsa block in the second week of July, they said.
A National Joint Outbreak Response Team (NJORT) was deployed to Balaghat on August 12 to strengthen the multidisciplinary response, while national health institutions, including the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), have been supporting the investigation.
The situation was reviewed at the national level on August 4, with discussions on the epidemiological profile, reported mortality, measles and malaria findings, laboratory investigations, entomological assessment and containment measures, the officials said.
The national response has brought together public-health-surveillance experts, the Immunisation Division and the National Centre for Vector Borne Diseases Control (NCVBDC), besides an independent ICMR investigation team.
Teams from ICMR-Jabalpur and Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose Medical College, Jabalpur, have also been visiting the affected areas and providing technical feedback to state authorities, the officials said.
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.
Six mobile medical units have been deployed in Birsa and Baihar blocks to provide fever screening, outpatient services, maternal and child healthcare, tuberculosis (TB) and non-communicable diseases screening, diagnosis and medicines in remote tribal and Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group (PVTG) habitations.
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 (MR) vaccine dose, irrespective of their previous vaccination status.
More than 600 drinking-water sources have been purified, while insecticide spraying has been completed in 4,338 households and fogging undertaken in the affected and adjoining areas.
Treatment facilities at the Songudda Primary Health Centre (PHC) 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 response has also focused on child nutrition and other illnesses.
Screening has identified 7,711 children with severe acute malnutrition, of whom 518 required admission to nutrition-rehabilitation centres.
A total of 13,406 children with diarrhoea and 274 with severe pneumonia have also been identified and managed, while children with suspected serious bacterial infections have received specialised care.
Under Dastak 2026, around 1.58 lakh children have been screened, with Vitamin A supplementation and other child-health interventions undertaken.
The officials said the government has conducted a case-wise and retrospective review of the reported deaths, including verbal autopsies and examination of available medical records.
The available evidence indicates multiple clinical circumstances, including measles, malaria, measles-malaria co-infection, respiratory distress, dehydration, malnutrition, anaemia and shock, they added.
Several early deaths occurred at home or before patients reached an appropriate health facility, limiting the availability of clinical records and diagnostic specimens.
The officials said the reported deaths cannot be attributed to a single pathogen without adequate evidence and that public-health measures against measles, malaria and other identified health risks are continuing.
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. PTI PLB RC
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