A 53-year-old patient succumbed to Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS) at Nair Hospital in Mumbai, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) Commissioner confirmed on Wednesday. With this, the death toll from GBS in Maharashtra has risen to eight.
Rising GBS Cases Across the State
As of February 11, Maharashtra’s health department reported 192 suspected GBS cases, out of which 172 have been confirmed. So far, seven deaths had been recorded, but with this latest fatality, the number has now increased to eight.
Most GBS cases have emerged from Pune and surrounding areas. The breakdown of cases is as follows:
- 40 cases from Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) areas
- 92 cases from newly added villages under PMC
- 29 cases from Pimpri Chinchwad
- 28 cases from Pune Rural
- 8 cases from other districts
Hospitalized Patients and Critical Cases
Maharashtra’s Health Department reported that 104 patients have been discharged, while 50 remain in Intensive Care Units (ICU). Among them, 20 patients require ventilator support.
Contaminated Water Supply Suspected as Cause
On February 6, the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) sealed 30 private water supply plants in Nanded, Dhayari, and outer areas of Sinhgad village. Officials identified these locations as the epicenter of the GBS outbreak.
As reported by economictimes, authorities collected water samples from these plants and found them unfit for drinking. Some facilities were operating without proper permissions, while others had excessive levels of Escherichia coli bacteria. Additionally, several plants failed to use disinfectants or chlorine to control contamination.
Union Health Ministry Reviews the Situation
On February 3, Union Health Minister JP Nadda met with Maharashtra’s health and medical ministers to assess the measures taken to control the Guillain-Barré Syndrome outbreak. The government is now working on strengthening public health interventions to curb the spread of the disease.