Dehradun, May 22: With black fungus cases rising in Uttarakhand, it was declared a notifiable disease in the state under the Epidemic Act, 1897 on Saturday. So far, 64 people have been infected with black fungus in the state and of them, four have died.

Black fungus or mucormycosis has been declared a notifiable disease for its co-ordinated treatment as a growing number of people are contracting the infection post COVID-19, Health Secretary Pankaj Kumar Pandey said.

The state government also issued an SOP on Saturday for the judicious distribution of Amphotericin B, a drug used in treating black fungus patients.

Amphotericin B should be provided to only government medical colleges, institutions and Covid-dedicated hospitals on payment after they formally requisition for its supply on the prescribed format giving details of the patients and nature of infection. Mucormycosis: India Reports 8,848 Black Fungus Cases, 23,000 Additional Amphotericin Vials Allocated.

Rashmi Pant and Kailash Gunjyal have been appointed as the nodal officers for scrutinising the requisitions for Kumaon and Garhwal regions respectively, the SOP said. The current SOP supersedes an earlier order issued on May 18 for the judicious use of the drug, it said.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)