Over One Crore Homes In Encephalitis Hot Spots Provided Tap Water Connections Under Jal Jeevan Mission

In a positive development, under its flagship Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM), the Government has covered more than 10 million homes in 61 districts that are known to be notorious for Japanese Encephalitis-Acute Encephalitis Syndrome, reports Economic Times.

The said 61 districts are spread over five States which are endemic to varied forms of encephalitis. The development has led to a 32 per cent rise in household tap water connections in the 61 priority districts. The figure is about 12 per cent higher than the national average rise of about 23.43 per cent in providing tap water connections in the country during the past 22 months.

Japanese Encephalitis-Acute Encephalitis Syndrome, is a brain fever in children that needs a multi-pronged approach for treatment. This and other kinds of acute encephalitis syndromes are caused by different types of viruses, bacteria, parasites, fungi and spirochetes.

It should be noted that the lack of clean drinking water is said to have been a major issue in checking the different forms of encephalitis, as unsafe water is a major cause of malnutrition.

“The absence of clean drinking water aggravates encephalitis syndrome because unsafe water is a cause of malnutrition. When malnourished children are afflicted, they either take longer to recover or have poorer chances of survival,” said Lokesh Nath, a former in-charge overseeing the National Vector Borne Disease Control Programme in Uttar Pradesh’s Bareilly, one of the hotspots.