West Bengal has recorded more than 500 new dengue cases in the seven days ending 7 September, pushing the state's total tally for the current monsoon season past 4,500, according to data released by the West Bengal Health Department. The surge follows an intensive door-to-door surveillance drive launched after the department issued a standard operating procedure (SOP) for dengue monitoring and prevention on 2 September.

Scale of the Outbreak

The state's dengue caseload has climbed sharply since April. According to departmental figures, 770 people had been infected by 30 April, rising to 1,946 by 31 July and 3,966 by 31 August — before crossing 4,500 in the first week of September. The acceleration in August and September coincides with peak monsoon conditions, which create ideal breeding grounds for the Aedes mosquito.

Districts Most Affected

Murshidabad is the worst-hit district on both counts — new weekly cases and cumulative annual tally. Of the roughly 500 newly detected cases in the past seven days, 96 were reported from Murshidabad alone. Over the full calendar year, the district accounts for 870 of the state's 4,500-plus cases, making it the single largest contributor. Kolkata ranks second, with 402 cumulative cases this year and 62 new infections in the past week.

What the Government Said

A Health Department official defended the transparency of this year's figures, noting a deliberate shift away from past practices of underreporting. 'However, the good thing is that whatever the figures that have surfaced this year are 100 per cent authentic, without any question of underquoting the affected figure or describing dengue as 'unknown fever' — a phenomenon which was rampant during the last few years,' the official said. The official attributed this to clear instructions from Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari that dengue cases must be reported as dengue and not masked under the label of 'unknown fever.'

Chief Minister Adhikari had earlier urged residents not to panic despite continued heavy rainfall, characterising the situation as serious but not highly alarming. He also noted that the current caseload, though elevated, remains lower than the figures recorded during the same monsoon period in the previous year.

The SOP and Surveillance Drive

The 2 September SOP triggered an extensive exercise involving door-to-door monitoring and immediate blood testing of individuals displaying dengue symptoms. Officials credit this intensified surveillance — rather than a sudden spike in transmission alone — as a key reason for the sharp rise in detected cases over the past week. This distinction matters: higher case counts may partly reflect better detection, not necessarily a proportionate worsening of the outbreak.

What Comes Next

With the monsoon season likely to persist through September, health authorities are expected to maintain heightened surveillance across high-burden districts. The trajectory of cases in Murshidabad and Kolkata will be closely watched as the state attempts to contain further spread before conditions dry out.