Four people suffering from Scrub Typhus have died in the last three days. With this, the toll from this disease has reached to 12 in the district.

Around 44 people were diagnosed positive with Scrub Typhus in the city, sources said. Most of these patients are being treated at the Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH). The local administration is apparently not very serious on the issue, sources said. 
Meanwhile, state Health Minister Deepak Sawant inspected the situation at GMCH last week and issued directives to take all possible steps to check the spread of the disease.

The disease is normally found in South-West Asia and South America. In India, the patients of Scrub Typhus are found in Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Assam and Vidarbha. The disease starts spreading with the onset of monsoon season. It occurs during winter also at some places. Around 10 lakh people get affected due to this disease and deaths occur, if immediate medical assistance is not provided to the patients. The first case of Scrub Typhus was registered in Japan in 1899, sources added.