Bangalore: With 43 deaths due to swine flu, as of Monday, Bangalore has now overtaken Pune as the city in India that has accounted for the highest number of deaths due to the virus. Authorities blame it on the weather, the large floating population and even the IT industry.
Doctors say that Bangalore's famously cool weather could have contributed to this.
Dr H Paramesh, Director, Lakeside Hospital, says: "We are in the high altitude at 3,000 feet above sea level. The temperature is lower and most respiratory infections in Bangalore - 65 per cent of them -- come in July to October. There is a chance when the temperature cools down further in the winter time, it might get worse."
But it's not just the climate. Health officials say there are other reasons for the spread of the virus in the city.
I R Perumal, Principal Health Secretary, says: "Bangalore's climatic condition is known for many flus. They are thinking it is a seasonal flu that is why they are neglecting. Unfortunately most of the cases they go in the 11th hour, take Tamiflu and one or two days they go to the ventilator level and they are collapsing. Pollution is also growing more and more - large number of vehicles, industry. IT sector is well established in Karnataka - so floating population, foreigners, insiders going abroad and coming..."
The state government has been distributing homeopathic and ayurvedic medicines free of cost to the public to try and prevent the spread of infection in the city.