With the steady drop in temperatures and rise in seasonal flu cases, the state public health department has issued an advisory on seasonal flu. This comes shortly after the Union government’s National Programme on Climate Change and Human Health identified Telangana as one of the states at risk of cold waves, incidentally the only one from South India. The other “cold wave” states in the list include Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Jammu & Kashmir, Ladakh, Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, and Odisha.
A cold wave is defined by a sharp drop in air temperature, resulting in extremely low temperatures. The vulnerable groups include the homeless, elderly, economically disadvantaged, disabled individuals, pregnant or lactating women, children, outdoor workers, managers of night shelters, and farmers. While Telangana’s weather may not be as severe as that of some northern states, the government has urged the people to take precautions.
The state public health director has issued an advisory regarding the increasing risk of seasonal flu in cold weather. “As the IMD Hyderabad has forecast dry weather across Telangana for the next seven days and reported low temperatures (less than 15°C) in some districts, there is an increased risk of acute respiratory infections, such as seasonal flu/influenza,” the advisory states. Symptoms of influenza include sudden onset of fever, cough, sore throat.
