CRPF Jawan Amal Barman Dies of Dengue in Gujarat; 43 Security Personnel Hospitalised

One security personnel from the contingent assembled in Gujarat for the National Unity Day parade at Ekta Nagar has died after contracting dengue, while the number of dengue-positive personnel admitted to Gandhinagar Civil Hospital has risen to 43, hospital authorities said on Wednesday.

Resident Medical Officer Vipula Pandya confirmed the death to IANS and said the man had come to Gujarat with other security personnel for preparations for Rashtriya Ekta Diwas, which will be observed on 31 October at Ekta Nagar. The event, held on the birth anniversary of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, is expected to feature police and paramilitary contingents.

According to Pandya, the deceased first reported to the hospital on 3 October and tested positive for dengue. At that stage, his condition and other medical parameters were satisfactory, so doctors treated him as an outpatient and advised rest and medication. He returned on 6 October after his health worsened, and tests showed a fall in platelet count, leading to his admission.

Early on Wednesday morning, he developed chest pain and uneasiness and later died, the RMO said. NDTV, citing the hospital, described the death as the first among visiting security forces in the current outbreak.

Pandya also said that 43 dengue-positive personnel are now admitted in indoor wards, up from 24 cases reported earlier. She clarified that this figure includes only inpatients and does not cover suspected cases or those being treated as outpatients.

The personnel affected are drawn from the Border Security Force, CRPF and Indo-Tibetan Border Police and belong to different states. They began arriving in Gandhinagar from 21 September and have been housed in government quarters in Sectors 28 and 29.

According to an official statement reported by The Times of India, water had accumulated at the newly constructed housing complex, after which personnel contracted dengue and were taken to Gandhinagar Civil Hospital.

Following the emergence of the initial cluster, Gujarat Health Minister Praful Pansheriya chaired a review meeting on 6 October and ordered intensified vector-control measures. The Health Department has since directed intensive fogging, anti-larval action, fever surveillance and patient tracking at the accommodation site and the parade ground.

The minister has also instructed that four health workers be deployed in every block of the government accommodation and that no water be allowed to stagnate on the premises.

Statewide data released by the Health Department places the outbreak in a broader seasonal context. Up to the 40th week of 2026, more than 1.39 crore blood samples were tested for malaria, yielding 1,401 cases, while more than 1.50 lakh serum samples examined at 42 hospitals produced 2,345 dengue-positive cases.

Pansheriya has said that malaria and dengue cases in Gujarat in 2026 were lower by 39.6 per cent and 20.6 per cent, respectively, compared with the previous year. He also said stocks of anti-malarial medicines, insecticides and larvicides were adequate.

Hospital authorities said the admitted personnel are undergoing treatment and that no further fatalities among the parade contingent have been reported.