East
Preventive health in West Bengal
A state with three separate problems: kala-azar in the north, dense urban dengue, and the encephalitis belt reaching in from the east.
What matters most in West Bengal
Kala-azar
Why here: The northern districts remain part of the endemic sandfly belt under national elimination.
What to look for: Fever beyond two weeks, swelling abdomen, weight loss, darkening skin.
What to do: Free diagnosis and treatment under NCVBDC; accept indoor residual spraying.
Dengue
Why here: Kolkata and its suburbs sustain heavy seasonal transmission in stored water and construction sites.
What to look for: The day 3–7 crash: belly pain, vomiting, bleeding, sudden weakness.
What to do: Weekly emptying of tanks and containers; paracetamol only.
Japanese encephalitis
Why here: Northern and eastern districts share the flooded-paddy and piggery landscape that drives JE.
What to look for: Fever with confusion, stiff neck or fits, especially in children.
What to do: JE vaccine through the UIP in endemic districts; treat confusion with fever as an emergency.
And everywhere in India
These are not specific to West Bengal, but they cause more illness nationally than anything above, and every one of them is covered free by a national programme.
Tuberculosis
Why here: Still India's deadliest infectious disease, in every state and every income group.
What to look for: A cough lasting more than two weeks, evening fever, night sweats, losing weight without trying.
What to do: Diagnosis and the full drug course are free under the NTEP at any government facility. Stopping early is what creates drug-resistant TB — finish the course.
Snakebite
Why here: One of India's largest causes of accidental death, and heavily rural. Most deaths are delays, not venom.
What to look for: Any bite from an unidentified snake. Drooping eyelids, difficulty swallowing or breathing, or bleeding that will not stop are emergencies.
What to do: Go straight to a government hospital with antivenom. Do not cut, suck, or apply a tourniquet, and do not go to a traditional healer first — that detour is what kills.
Rabies
Why here: Effectively always fatal once symptoms begin, and effectively always preventable before they do.
What to look for: Any bite, scratch or lick on broken skin from a dog, cat, monkey or bat. There is no safe wait-and-see.
What to do: Wash the wound with soap under running water for 15 minutes, then get the vaccine the same day. Free under the NRCP. A wound that looks trivial still counts.
Dengue
Why here: Present in every state and rising with urbanisation; the danger is the crash after the fever breaks.
What to look for: High fever with severe body ache, then — around day 3–7 — belly pain, vomiting, bleeding gums, or sudden exhaustion. That phase is the dangerous one.
What to do: Fluids and paracetamol only. Avoid ibuprofen and aspirin, which worsen bleeding. Empty standing water weekly — the mosquito breeds in clean water at home, not in drains.
The programmes named on this page
- NCVBDC — National Center for Vector Borne Diseases Control
- NTEP — National TB Elimination Programme
- UIP — Universal Immunisation Programme
- IDSP — Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme
- NRCP — National Rabies Control Programme
- NSCAEM — National Sickle Cell Anaemia Elimination Mission
Each is a real government programme, and the testing or treatment described is free at a government facility.
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