Nearly 600 people killed in India by swine flu
India is putting in efforts to combat the swine flu that has claimed nearly 600 people.
Of the 585 lives claimed by the deadly H1N1 virus so far, 100 died in just three days leading up to Feb. 15, according to health officials.
Nearly 8,500 people in India had been confirmed with the virus up to the middle of this month.
The Indian outbreak is already geographically dispersed.
According to government reports, it has killed 165 people in north-western Rajasthan state and 144 in Gujarat to the west. Madhya Pradesh in the centre has reported 76 dead, while Maharashtra in the west and Telangana in the south have seen 58 and 46, respectively.
To evaluate the public health crisis, Health Secretary B.P. Sharma chaired a high-level meeting last week. The government subsequently said that it was drafting guidelines for vaccinating healthcare workers.
The states Rajasthan and Gujarat are the worst affected by the flu.
Category: Features, Health alert
