128 H1N1 deaths in India in past week: Govt.

As many as 128 people have died of influenza A (H1N1) in India in the week ended September 5, an official statement from the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare said here today.

With this, the toll in the country since the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared the swine flu as a pandemic in mid-June last year has gone up to 2241.

The WHO, on August 10, had declared an end to the pandemic but called for continued vigilance, pointing out that pandemics, like the viruses that cause them, are unpredictable.

Of the 128 deaths, 45 occurred in Maharashtra, 32 in Gujarat, 13 in Madhya Pradesh, 12 in Karnataka, 9 in Rajasthan, 5 in Andhra Padesh, 4 each in Delhi and Uttar Pradesh and 1 each in Punjab, Haryana, Uttarakhand and Chattisgarh.

A total of 1257 fresh cases of the flu were reported during the week, including 381 in Maharashtra, 316 in Delhi, 212 in Karnataka, 70 in Uttar Pradesh, 64 in Gujarat, 55 in Rajasthan and 51 in Andhra Pradesh.

NNN