At least 50 teachers, students, and staff members at Jahangirnagar University (JU) have contracted dengue in the last 10 days, bringing the total number of cases of the viral infection among campus residents to approximately 80 since September 1.

On average, one or two new cases were reported daily at JU during the first 25 days of September. However, after September 25, the daily infection rate surged to four or five cases, according to Najmul Hossain Rasel, the lab-in-charge at the JU Medical Centre.

"The conditions of many patients, due to low platelet counts, are particularly alarming. At its current capacity, the JU Medical Centre is struggling to provide medical care to the rising number of patients."

"Our medical centre lacks the necessary facilities to handle critical cases. We are referring patients to external hospitals for advanced treatment," said Dr Shamshur Rahman, chief medical officer at JU.

From dorms to dining halls, the campus is overrun with mosquitoes, students have said, adding that several on-campus waterbodies have dried up and become breeding grounds, littered with trash, making the problem worse

"I contracted dengue while staying in the dormitory. Poor waste management and stagnant water around our dorm may be the reason for the rise in dengue cases," said Mahmudul Hasan, a student of the zoology department and a resident of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Hall.

However, Dr Kabirul Bashar, a professor of zoology and a renowned entomologist, said, "Aedes mosquitoes are the primary carriers of dengue fever. We haven't found Aedes mosquitoes at Jahangirnagar University yet. Most infected students likely contracted dengue in the capital city. We will be speaking with them to confirm their whereabouts during the time of infection and will also check for the presence of Aedes mosquitoes on campus again."

Meanwhile, students have complained about the university administration's ineffective measures to control the mosquito problem, saying that the campus remains unclean, with stagnant water in ditches, drainage canals, near bathrooms, and toilets, providing breeding grounds for mosquitoes.

They also said mosquito infestation is worsening due to the irregular spraying of insecticides.

In response, Deputy Registrar Abdur Rahman of the estate department said university staffers were regularly spraying insecticides around drains and dormitories to eliminate mosquito larvae.