A day after the Capital recorded its first dengue death of the year, the Delhi Health Department on Friday said that it will step up measures to contain the spread of disease.
“Both the general public and civic authorities have to work together and take measures to contain the spread of dengue. Measures have been put in place including routine fogging and checking for mosquito breeding. Dengue cases this year are much lower than what we recorded last year and the situation in much better,” said Delhi Health Secretary J. P. Singh.
Mr. Singh added that the Health Department has started a drive to make people aware about do’s and don’ts of dengue. “The general public should avoid accumulation of water around their houses and cover their water tanks so that there is no scope for mosquitoes to breed. Civic agencies have been asked to conduct surprise checks and take strict action if mosquito breeding is found in any area.”
A 15-year-old resident of Sangam Vihar in South Delhi had died of dengue at the All-India Institute of Medical Sciences. His death has also spurred the civic bodies into action.
“The Capital has reported over 100 cases of dengue so far and the cases of malaria are less than 90 while last year we had crossed the 100 mark by now. The city has also not reported any cases of chikungunya so far. This is a huge improvement over last year, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi is also conducting regular checks and the treatment to ensure that dengue and malaria cases remain limited,” said MCD chief medical officer Dr. N .K. Yadav.
“This temperature is conducive for the breeding of Aedes aegypti mosquito, which breeds in stagnant fresh water and is responsible for the spread of dengue. We are continuing with the usual measures to control the situation by carrying out routine checks, flogging of places from where cases of dengue have been reported and aggressive awareness campaigns on radio and television. We, want to reassure the general public that there is no cause for concern and that the Government is doing its bit to ensure that the number of dengue and malaria cases continue to stay low this season,” added Dr. Yadav.
