Urging people not to panic in the face of Japanese Encephalitis, Uttar Pradesh chief minister, Yogi Adityanath claimed on Sunday, 1 March, that “flu is not a disease” and people develop a cold primarily due to a change in the weather.
Adityanath was speaking at the fifth edition of the ‘Mukhyamantri Arogya Mela,’ inaugurating a month-long vaccination drive for children to prevent the annual spurt of Japanese Encephalitis and Acute Encephalitis Syndrome among children.
He stated, “Flu is not a disease. When the weather changes, some people catch cold. It is flu in itself and the cause of its spread has been given names like swine flu and bird flu,” the chief minister said, while seeking to caution people against panicking in face of the spread of any disease.
‘Biggest Solution to Flu is Awareness’
Speaking on the occasion, the chief minister also stressed upon the need not to get panicked over the spread of any disease, including flu, and to counter it instead by a systematic action plan.
Emphasising upon the role of awareness in fighting the spread of any disease, Adityanath said, “There is a need to make people aware of it and alert the Health Department about the need to get the solution to fight the disease. The biggest solution to the flu is awareness.”
“Even if it has spread, do not create panic over it. For this, the Health Department should prepare a better action plan. Hospitals should be made aware of this in advance and special wards should be made there, so that it can be stopped from spreading,” he added.
Under a UNICEF-aided vaccination campaign ‘DASTAK,’ the entire state machinery last year and earlier went door to door in various districts affected by JE and acute encephalitis syndrome.
In India, particularly in UP, cases of swine flu are on the rise. The death toll in the state has reached nine, six of which are from Meerut alone, and 17 Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC) jawans have tested positive for swine flu in the district in the past 48 hours, reported News18.
(With inputs from PTI, News18)
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