Kolkata, Oct 10 (IANS) A sudden rise in dengue cases in pockets of rural and urban West Bengal over the past month has raised concern in the administration ahead of the forthcoming Durga Puja festival.

A state health department official said 14 gram panchayats and eight urban civic bodies, including three municipal corporations and five municipalities, had been identified as dengue hotspots following a sharp increase in cases in specific areas over the past month“Most of the 14 gram panchayats identified as dengue hotspots are in Murshidabad district. The others are in South 24 Parganas, Nadia, Jalpaiguri, Birbhum and Hooghly districts,” the official said.The three municipal corporations reporting a similar trend in certain wards are the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC), Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation (BMC) in North 24 Parganas district and Howrah Municipal Corporation (HMC) in Howrah district, adjoining Kolkata.According to the official, six wards in the KMC, three in the HMC and four in the BMC have been identified as pockets witnessing a sudden rise in new dengue cases over the past month.Among the municipalities identified as sensitive zones are Chakdaha in Nadia district and Dumdum, South Dumdum, Kamarhati and Baranagar in North 24 Parganas district.During the current calendar year, the highest numbers of dengue cases have been reported from nine districts, namely Murshidabad, Kolkata, North 24 Parganas, South 24 Parganas, Nadia, Hooghly, Howrah, Malda and East Burdwan.However, state health department figures show that the overall number of dengue cases reported so far in 2026 remains marginally lower than the corresponding figure for 2025.Till October 7, 2025, West Bengal had recorded 12,652 dengue cases, compared with 10,177 cases during the same period in 2026.Despite the lower cumulative tally, the recent rise in infections has emerged as a cause for concern. The health department official said 3,948 new cases were reported during September, while nearly 1,100 cases were recorded in the first week of October alone.“Despite the lower overall number of cases this year, the worrying aspect is the recent rise in infections. While 3,948 new dengue cases were reported in September, nearly 1,100 cases were recorded in the first week of October alone,” the official said.