NEW DELHI, March 11 (Xinhua) -- The health minister of India's Gujarat state said on Saturday that one death from H1N1 influenza has been reported in the western state.
Rushikesh Patel said that so far 77 local cases of H1N1 have been reported, adding that the state has also recorded three H3N2 cases until March 10 with no fatalities from this subtype of the influenza A virus.
"There has been one death in the state till now which is due to H1N1," he told a press conference on the situation of seasonal flu in Gujarat. "There is no need to panic as the government is working round the clock to ensure people's safety."
On Friday India's federal health ministry said Karnataka and Haryana states have confirmed one death each from H3N2 flu.
There has been a surge in influenza cases across many parts of the South Asian country and patients are complaining of prolonged illness, cough, fever and respiratory problems.
The health ministry said it was keeping a close watch on the seasonal flu situation in states on real-time basis.
Latest data from health authorities showed a total of 3,038 lab confirmed cases of various subtypes of influenza including H3N2 have been reported until March 9 by the states. They included 1,245 cases in January, and 1,307 in February.
In the first two months of this year, a total of 955 H1N1 cases have been reported in India, with 545 of them recorded in Tamil Nadu, 170 in Maharashtra and 74 in Gujarat, according to the health ministry. ■