Rajasthan swine flu toll touches 135

Jaipur, Feb 13 (IANS) The swine flu toll in Rajasthan this year climbed to 135 with five more people deaths due to the disease reported Friday, officials said.

"Maximum deaths have occurred from Jaipur, Jodhpur, Barmer and Nagaur," said a medical and health department official.

He said that total positive cases found across the state from Jan 1 this year touched 1,700, with the maximum positive cases have come from Jaipur. Till Thursday night, it had recorded 435 positive cases.

Meanwhile, the state government has directed all hospitals attached with state government-run medical colleges to set up separate isolation wards for H1NI patients.

Besides this, state Health Minister Rajendra Rathore has asked these hospitals to have separate ICUs and arrange ventilators in sufficient quantity.

He has also sought supplies of Tamiflu, a medicine used to treat the disease.

Rajasthan has already made medical test free for people suffering from symptoms of swine flu at the six government medical colleges across the state.