Diarrhoea has surfaced with a vengeance. Out of the 64000 reportedly affected across the country 64 have already given up their ghosts. Noakhali seems to have been hit the hardest. The southeastern district alone has registered 27 deaths so far. Patuakhali, Maulvibazaar, Bhola, Khulna. Pabna, Pirojpur. Rangamati. Barguna, Naogaon, Sylhet and Netrokona follow suit with their share of victims.

No death has been reported yet in Dhaka, but lCDDR,B(lnternational Centre for Diarrhoeal Diseases' Research), its lone specialised medical facility for gastrointestinal complications and disorder, has seen a beeline of patients in the last few days.

Given the simplicity of the treatment, it is shocking so many people die every year. The knowledge that the core aspect in the treatment of diarrhoea patient is retaining fluid in the body through unabated oral injection to offset its relentless draining — the most conspicuous aspect of this complaint — has always been in the possession of domestic wisdom but it got authenticity with the advent of the much-publicised Orsallne.

It shows how many miles media in general still has to go to sensitise people on health issues. But a bigger challenge lies elsewhere: government's commitment to provide the citizen with a basic need like safe drinking water. Diarrhoea being a waterborne disease authorities need to go the whole hog to make sure people do not fall easy prey to contaminated water.

Tall order but there is no other way out.