UDUPI: The Deputy Commissioner, T. Sham Bhatt, said on Friday that the district administration is taking all measures to check the spread of hepatitis A in and around Manipal.

Addressing presspersons here, Mr. Bhatt said that while five cases of hepatitis A were reported in January this year, seven, four, and 18 cases, were reported in February, March and April, respectively. But there has been a quantum jump in May, and so far 50 cases have been reported, he said. Most of these cases have been reported from in and around Manipal.

Of the seven water samples tested on April 22, five tested positive for the virus. Of the nine samples tested on May 3, two tested positive.

Mr. Bhatt said that in order to check the spread of the disease, chlorination of water has been taken up. The district administration held discussions with the Department of Community Medicine at Kasturba Medical College, Manipal, and the authorities of the Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE).

Most out of the affected persons in Manipal are students studying in the educational institutions run by MAHE. These students are staying in the Indira Block, Chandrashekar Block and Raman Block hostels. Most of the affected students are NRIs.

Mr. Bhatt said students of these hostels were consuming food outside their hostels.

The district administration suspected that water provided in at least seven hotels at Manipal might have led to the disease.

Of the 10 water samples collected from these hotels, five had tested positive for the virus, one had tested negative and the results of four samples are awaited.

Cold drinks and ice-creams served in the hotels too could be adding to the problem, he said.

Mr. Bhatt said it is necessary for the general public and the students in Udupi, Manipal and surrounding areas to take precautionary measures such as drinking boiled and cooled water and to consume food when it is hot. This is all the more necessary as there is scarcity of water in Manipal and Udupi. Hotels have been directed to provide pure and treated water to customers.

Eight private water tankers are operating in Udupi city. A random sample of water in one tanker had tested positive for the virus. The water supplied by all the tankers will be tested from Saturday onwards. The sources of water for all these tankers will be chlorinated, Mr. Bhatt said.

The District Health and Family Welfare Officer, B.M. Hegde, and the District Health Surveillance Officer, Rohini, were present.

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