The Darjeeling district health department has showcaused 12 private nursing homes in Siliguri for alleged anomalies in treating dengue patients.

“We served notices to these clinics after allegations that they charged more from dengue patients. Also, these private health clinics, in a number of cases, didn’t do their bit to prevent the spread of dengue,” said Tulsi Pramanik, the chief medical officer of health (CMOH) of Darjeeling, after a meeting with nursing home authorities here on Friday.

Siliguri mayor Gautam Deb, who was present at the meeting, was equally critical.

Most nursing homes misled patients by saying provision for dengue treatment was not there under the state government’s Swasthya Sathi card, Deb said. “Private clinics charged a lot from patients instead of accepting the card,” he said.

“This is a violation of government norms,” he said.

Altogether, representatives of 55 nursing homes from the plains of Darjeeling district, two from hills and six from Jalpaiguri district attended the meeting, said a health official.

“Those who have Swasthya Sathi should know it has a helpline number. If they face any inconvenience or denial, they can call the number for help,” he said.

Mayor Deb said they will soon hold a meeting with the owners of pathological labs of the city as many persons have alleged that some labs charge extra for various tests.

This year, Siliguri has witnessed a spike in dengue cases. “This year, the total number of cases from January to October crossed the 2,200 mark, almost five times from 2019,” said a source. In 2019, 392 people had dengue from January to October while there had been no major outbreak of the disease in 2020 and 2021.