36 more swine flu deaths, CPI-M leader tests positive

New Delhi: Swine flu deaths continued unabated as 36 more patients perished due to the virus pushing the toll towards the 1,800-mark while the number of affected people crossed 30,000 on Tuesday with senior CPI(M) leader Gautam Deb among scores who tested positive.
A medical bulletin issued by AMRI Hospital in Kolkata said 61-year-old Deb, a member of the party’s Central Committee, has tested positive for H1N1 and has been put on ventilator support. Data collated by Union Health Ministry said that as on March 16, 1,767 people have died of swine flu while the number of affected persons stood at 30,366.
Gujarat is the worst affected with 392 people having perished while number of affected people has reached 6186.  Swine flu has killed 384 people in Rajasthan where 6,241 people are suffering from the disease. The death toll in Maharashtra crossed the 300-mark as 301 have died due to the contagious disease while 3,579 people have been affected.
In Madhya Pradesh, 249 people have perished and 1,946 have been affected. In Delhi, 11 deaths have been reported while the number of swine flu cases crossed the 4,000-mark. The deaths include two pregnant women.
The toll in Telangana has increased to 73 while in Karnataka, 71 people have perished to the disease. In Punjab, 52 people have died in Punjab. Eleven people have died in Kerala while in Tamil Nadu, 13 persons have died due to the disease. The death toll in West Bengal has risen to 21 while Uttar Pradesh has witnessed 35 deaths.
In Jammu and Kashmir, the death toll stands at 16. In Andhra Pradesh, 20 persons have died while the disease has claimed the lives of 16 people in Chhattisgarh.
A study conducted by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology has said the swine flu virus in India may have mutated to a more severe and infectious strain than the earlier H1N1 strains. (PTI)