Birendranagar, Nov. 25 -- Dengue cases are rising in Karnali Province despite the onset of colder weather, with health workers warning that poor sanitation is driving the spread.

According to the Provincial Health Service Directorate in Surkhet, 1,424 people have tested positive for dengue from mid-July to mid-October of the current fiscal year, a figure higher than the same period last year. Surkhet alone accounts for 1,298 cases, with most infections detected between July and October.

Vector control officer Shyamlal Acharya said Rukum West has recorded 78 cases and Dailekh 26. Salyan has nine, Kalikot six, Dolpa and Jajarkot three each, and Mugu one. No cases have been reported in Humla and Jumla. One person has died of dengue in Surk...