mangaluru spurt in dengue cases at a time when dakshina kannada district is fighting covid19 has left the health department on its toesbesides the many cases of covid19 the district also has reported 84 patients testing positive for dengue between january 1 and june 7 moreover the department is also puzzled after a dengue cluster with 21 cases was discovered in one area of puttur taluk within a month it has deputed more health workers to prevent the spread of disease in the area in the district 96 cases of dengue were reported between january 1 and june 19 in 2019 only seven cases were reported in puttur then though the number of cases is less compared to the corresponding period in previous year finding more cases in one cluster is a cause of concern said district surveillance officer dr naveen chandra kulal we have found 21 cases in bettampady and balnadu villages of puttur taluk recently we have sent more health workers including asha and anms to carry out special drives to prevent the spread of dengue they are paying doortodoor visits and giving mosquito nets to people a team of experts has also visited hospitals in the taluk and directed doctors to offer treatment and take measures to prevent the spread of dengue we have also directed doctors to be cautious about covid19 but not refuse treatment to dengue cases dr kulal told toi