Cuttack, Feb. 16: Three cases of jaundice were reported today, taking the total number of people affected with the water-borne disease in the city to 119.

The state's health minister Atanu Sabyasachi Nayak and housing and urban development minister Puspendra Singhdeo today visited the city and took stock of the situation here.

Both the ministers visited Jobra, from where maximum cases of jaundice due to water contamination have been reported.

While reviewing the situation at the collectorate, the housing and urban development minister asked officials of the Cuttack Municipal Corporation and the public health department to intensify mass-cleaning and repair of old pipelines in the jaundice-affected pockets on war-footing.

Besides, senior officials have been asked to submit an estimate for sanctioning of necessary funds for tackling the emergency situation as an action plan is being prepared to check all the pipeline connections across the city.

District administration officials said 200 squads would be formed to conduct a detail verification of the pipelines within the couple of days.

"Adequate steps are being taken to tackle the situation on a war footing. Already a detail project report is being prepared for the supply of safe drinking water worth Rs 300 crore through a pipeline network in the city," said Singhdeo.

At present, drinking water is being supplied through 193 temporary water tanks in the jaundice-affected pockets in the city.

The authorities have deployed 18 tankers to fill in the temporary tanks with drinking water at least three times on a daily basis.

Nearly 50 squads of the corporation and the health department are carrying out necessary verification and repair of leakages in the pipelines network in the jaundice-hit localities.

"So far, the source of drinking water supply has not been affected, while the jaundice cases have been reported due to leakages in the distribution lines and other service connections," said collector Nirmal Chandra Mishra.

A district administration official said that according to the proposed action plan, the city had been divided into 20 zones while each squad (nine members each), headed by the civic body's executive or assistant engineers, is supervising the process of verification of the pipelines.

"Door-to-door survey to identify the jaundice patients is being conducted by health workers, and special wards have been opened at the SCB hospital, Sishu Bhavan and the city hospital," said Nayak.