Bhubaneswar, Aug 24 - At least 24 people have died of diarrhoea in the past three weeks and over two dozen are being treated in Orissa's Kalahandi district, an official said Monday.

The outbreak was first reported nearly three weeks ago from a hamlet on a hilltop, 30 km from Bhabanipatna town, and spread to dozens of villages on the foothills in Bhabanipatna and Lanjigarh blocks.

Unhygienic living conditions and contaminated drinking water sources have caused the disease, district collector R. Santhanagopalan said.

'So far we have lost 24 lives to diarrhoea. The situation is under control. There was no death in the past 48 hours,' Santhanagopalan told IANS.

He said doctors and health workers had treated about 900 patients in hospitals and temporary camps set up after the outbreak at various places.

'At least 10 teams of doctors are moving around,' he said.

Bhabanipatna is 418 km from Bhubaneswar. Nearly 100 people died of diarrhoea in the same district in 2007.