By IANS,
New Delhi : As many as 245 people, mostly in West Bengal, have died this year due to meningococcal meningitis, a brain infection, Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad said Friday.
In a written reply to the Lok Sabha, the minister, however, said that deaths due to meningitis were showing a declining trend in the past three years.
Most deaths – 179 – were reported from West Bengal. Andhra Pradesh came next with 29 deaths.
Uttar Pradesh accounted for six deaths, Tripura five, Mizoram four, Karnataka three and Meghalaya and Uttarakhand (one each).
In 2010, 341 people died due to the disease, down from 467 in 2009 and 542 in 2008.