A 26-year-old CRPF jawan from Assam has died during treatment after falling ill with suspected dengue in Gandhinagar, while more than 40 personnel staying in temporary accommodation have been hospitalised with mosquito-borne disease symptoms, according to a report by Nav Gujarat Samay.
The personnel had arrived from different parts of India for rehearsals ahead of the National Unity Day parade scheduled to be held at the Statue of Unity on October 31. They were temporarily accommodated at under-construction government housing in Sectors 28 and 29 of Gandhinagar.
According to the report, the personnel began developing fever and symptoms associated with dengue over the course of the week. The CRPF jawan’s condition later deteriorated, and he was shifted to a special ward at the civil hospital, where he died on the morning of October 8. The reported cause of death remains suspected dengue, and his body was sent for post-mortem examination to establish the cause of death.
The incident prompted senior CRPF and police officials to reach the civil hospital. The report said the presence of a large number of sick personnel at the government housing complex, along with the death, triggered an urgent response from the local health department and the Gandhinagar Municipal Corporation.
Health authorities and municipal teams began mosquito-control operations at the temporary accommodation site. These included spraying medicines and taking steps to control mosquito breeding and infestation across the premises. The reported response followed the discovery that personnel staying at the site had fallen ill in phases rather than through a single reported incident.
The temporary housing arrangement is located in a construction area, but the report does not establish the precise source of the suspected infection or identify a confirmed dengue outbreak. It also does not provide the results of laboratory testing, details of the patients’ medical condition, or the total number of personnel deployed at the accommodation site.
The death has raised immediate concerns about health and safety arrangements for personnel housed in temporary facilities during a major national event. The municipal and health authorities’ mosquito-control work is currently focused on the affected government housing complex, while the post-mortem examination is expected to help clarify the cause of the jawan’s death.
