Siliguri: Malaria, which has claimed 33 lives so far in 2002 in Jalpaiguri district, has in its grip 3,000 tea garden workers in Dooars area.

Four medical teams, which collected blood samples of workers at Rangamati, Naya Sailee and Meenglass Tej gardens in the worst affected Mal block, found 3000 workers to be malaria-infected, Dr S Bhowmick of the state-run Malbazar hospital said on October 30.

The situation in the three gardens, which employ 14,000 workers, might worsen if preventive measures were not taken, he said.

Of the total number of deaths in the district in 2002, 14 occurred in Mal block, chief medical officer of Health Dr Malay Ghose said.

PTI