LAHORE, Oct 1: At least seven patients, including a student, died on Saturday of dengue fever at various public and private hospitals, raising death toll to 139 in Lahore alone.

Hospital sources said the patients who died of dengue fever included Babar aged 40, Mubasshir (a 16-year-old student), Kiran Munir (26), Nusrat (25), Rehana (40), Rashida (60) and Niamat (80).

According to a health department report, nine patients died of dengue fever in various hospitals across the province during the last 24 hours.

The report said as many as 467 new dengue fever patients were confirmed during the last 24 hours, raising number of patients to 12,846 in Punjab, including 11,243 at the provincial capital. Of 467 patients, 339 were confirmed in Lahore, it said.

The virus has already claimed lives of a provincial secretary for mines and minerals, a Punjab Public Service Commission member, an MPA, a nurse and various students and children.

INDONESIAN EXPERTS: An Indonesian team comprising 20 dengue virus experts that had arrived in Lahore on Friday night, held a meeting with Secretary (Health) Muhammad Jahanzeb Khan on Saturday.

The secretary briefed the experts about outbreak of dengue virus, number of under-treatment patients, deaths, fumigation drive, provision of healthcare facilities and other measures being taken by the Punjab government.

The experts on this occasion said they would try their best to assist the government in combating the virus in the province. Earlier, Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif personally welcomed the Indonesian experts at a local hotel after they arrived at Allama Iqbal International Airport.

MOBILE TEAMS: The social welfare and Baitul Maal department has constituted 10 mobile teams, which will visit all nine towns of the city to create awareness about dengue virus among the masses.

This was stated by Secretary (Social Welfare) Fazal Abbas Mekan while speaking at a meeting here on Saturday.

Government officials and representatives of various NGOs also attended the meeting. The secretary urged the NGOs’ representatives to join the mobile teams and create awareness among citizens about the disease.