KATHMANDU, Sept 10: Ministry of Health (MoH) has urged all public and private water supplying agencies to ensure safety of drinking water. The ministry issued a press statement after a strain of cholera was detected in drinking water supplied in Kathmandu valley.
It has directed Kathmandu Upatyaka Khanepani Limited (KUKL), which supplies drinking water to household taps in the Kathmandu Valley, and companies that supply water in jars and tankers to ensure safety of the water they supply.
The ministry claimed that it has deployed health workers at water sources to monitor the quality.
Apart from the water supplied by the KUKL, the cholera virus has also been found in water from stone spouts and the water supplied by tankers.
The cholera strain, 01 Ogawa stereotype, has been detected in water samples collected from the disease hit areas. Even the E.coli and coliform bacteria have been found in jar water, which most people consider safe to drink.
“We have also directed local authorities like Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC), District Public Health Office (DPHOs) of the Kathmandu Valley, health posts and urban health clinics to monitor hygiene of foods like panipuri and other items sold by roadside vendors,” reads the statement.
The ministry informed that 142 people so far have already been infected with cholera in the ongoing monsoon in capital. Among them, majority of cholera infected people are from Lalitpur district. Thousands of diarrheal patients have received treatment in various health facilities in capital this monsoon.
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