These days Orissa's Kalahandi district is in grip of diarrhoea. According to official sources, it has taken 26 lives within a month. Nearly 50 villages under two blocks of Kalahandi district have been affected by this water-borne disease.

A central team will soon visit the affected areas in Bhawanipatna and Lanjigarh blocks to assess the situation. It will also held meetings with senior district administration officers and doctors. The team will be led by Uma Chawla, joint director of National Institute of Communicable Diseases (NICD).

Health and family welfare minister Prasanna Acharya said that 21 medical teams have been pressed into service, and one is being stationed at the Kalahandi district headquarters hospital to attend to emergency calls. Besides, doctors from VSS Medial College and Hospital have also been moved into the affected areas.

More than 200 diarrhoea patients have been treated till now with fresh cases being diagnosed everyday. Spread of the disease has been blamed to unhygienic living conditions and contaminated drinking water. Officials are requesting people to drink only safe drinking water. 200 doctors and health workers are trying to control the situation.