Bhubaneswar: The Odisha govt on Tuesday directed all district administrations to implement stringent measures to prevent the spread of diarrhoeal diseases ahead of the upcoming Rath Yatra festival, where large gatherings are expected across the state. Health minister Mukesh Mahaling said that the govt has launched a comprehensive awareness campaign alongside strict enforcement actions against contaminated food and water sources. “We are making coordinated and sustained efforts to stop the spread of the disease,” Mahaling said.Health secretary S Aswathy said approximately 10% of tested samples in the worst-hit Jajpur district have shown positive results for vibrio cholerae, the bacteria responsible for cholera. However, she noted an encouraging trend in recent days. “New patients reporting to hospitals are showing mild symptoms, indicating that our awareness initiatives are yielding results and people are seeking early medical intervention,” she explained.In response to the health concerns, municipal authorities in major cities, including Cuttack and Bhubaneswar, have intensified inspections of food establishments. Several raids have been conducted to ensure food safety compliance and prevent the sale of contaminated items.The National Health Mission (NHM) deployed additional doctors and mobile health teams in Jajpur to tackle and the situation. Eight medicine specialists and over 20 mobile health teams have been deployed in the affected areas of the district. With the new deployment, there are now 40 NHM mobile health teams operating in the district. Additionally, 45 mobile health camps have been organized in these areas, a govt statement said.Furthermore, awareness messages are being broadcast via microphones at the ward level in villages and urban areas, independent information about diarrhoea is being provided on health walls, ORS and zinc corners are being set up at health facilities, and awareness and precautionary messages are being spread through independent meetings of village welfare committees. Regular disinfection of various water sources is also being carried out extensively at the field level. To expand awareness programmes, NHM has also deployed 10 mobile awareness vans (IEC vans).Additional doctors, medical assistants, medicines and awareness pamphlets have also been sent to other affected regions and field-level awareness programs have been intensified, the govt statement said. Four state-level teams have been dispatched to oversee field-level implementation. These teams are composed of senior officials, specialists and advisors from the health and family welfare department. They will visit areas such as Bhuban, Banki, Dharmasala, Barachana and Bhandaripokhari to monitor field-level efforts and strengthen coordination among various departmental teams working on the ground. The focus is on water source purification, door-to-door campaigns, early identification and primary treatment of diarrhoea patients, distribution of medicines and halogen tablets and public awareness programmes, providing necessary guidance and assistance to make these initiatives more targeted, the govt statement said.