Singapore: A deadly swine flu outbreak has gripped India, killing nearly 206 people in a single week, thus raising this year's death toll to 407. The total number of reported cases in the country since January sums up to 5,157, according to the latest statistics from the health ministry.

Most of the cases have been reported from Delhi, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Telangana, while most of the deaths were reported in Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Rajasthan and Telangana.

A review meeting chaired by the secretary, Health and Family Welfare, Mr BP Sharma, was held recently to evaluate the availability of diagnostic kits, drugs and preventive measures. It was decided in the meeting that healthcare workers must be vaccinated before they treat swine flu patients.

The meeting was attended by director general Health Services Dr Jagdish Prasad, representatives of leading government hospitals such as Dr Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital, Safdurjung, AIIMS, and researchers and senior officials from the Indian Council of Medical Research and National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC).

The Health Ministry has already placed an order for enhancing stock of diagnostic kits to be supplied to the lab network under Integrated Disease Surveillance Program (IDSP) being used for testing H1N1 influenza.