Principal health secretary Brajesh Mehrotra on Wednesday convened a meeting to review preparations for tackling cases of swine flu in government hospitals.

The move comes after The Telegraph published a report regarding the failure of Infectious Disease Hospital, Agamkuan, to provide necessary protective gear to a suspected swine flu patient who is admitted there since Monday. When this newspaper informed Mehrotra about the hospital's poor condition on Tuesday, he had promised to look into the issue.

An official attending the meeting said: "The Infectious Disease Hospital officials concerned were given a piece of mind by the principal secretary for not being able to provide protective gear like mask and gloves to the patient."

Navneet Kumar Singh, the suspected swine flu patient, however, has tested negative.

Sources said the meeting lasted for around an hour in which Anand Kishore, secretary, health department, Patna Medical College and Hospital superintendent Lakhendra Prasad, Nalanda Medical College and Hospital superintendent cum in-charge of Infectious Disease Hospital Santosh Kumar, civil surgeon K.K. Mishra, state health society administrative officer Rajnish Kumar, regional deputy director, health services, Kavindra Prasad Sinha were also present.

D.K. Gupta, in charge of swine flu, state health department, said: "A decision was also taken that all district and medical college hospitals would be asked to strengthen their isolation wards. Infectious Disease Hospital would continue to be the nodal centre for treatment of swine flu and all other government hospitals, including medical college hospital and district hospital, would act as supporting treatment centres for swine flu. At Infectious Disease Hospital, a 40-bed isolation ward would be created."

Another official said the principal secretary also asked the Infectious Disease Hospital authorities to make arrangement of a ventilator and monitor for swine flu patients in the hospital, as was highlighted by this newspaper.

"The Infectious Disease Hospital officials have also been asked to make arrangement for personal protective equipment for the swine flu patients," added the official present in the meeting.

A personal protective equipment set includes mask, head cap, apron, shoe cover, goggles among other stuff. It would be used by patients of infectious diseases and their attendants so that the disease is not spread further, said the official.

Infectious Disease Hospital had not provided any protective gear to the 18-year-old Navneet till Tuesday. The patient was admitted to Infectious Disease Hospital on Monday evening and since then he was making to do with his own handkerchief.

Although Bihar is largely free of the swine flu attack, its toll in Punjab and Haryana on Wednesday climbed further with three more persons dying in the two states.

One more person succumbed due to swine flu in Punjab, raising the toll due to the H1N1 virus to 24 this year, said Deepak Bhatia, state surveillance officer of Punjab Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme. In Haryana, two more deaths were reported due to the disease, taking the toll to 17 this year, Haryana's additional director general, health services, Kamla Singh said.