A special train called the ‘mosquito terminator’ was pressed into service on Friday by the South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC), in collaboration with the Northern Railway, to spray anti-larval chemicals along the tracks to control mosquito breeding.
To fight vector-borne diseases such as dengue and chikungunya, insecticide will be sprayed using power sprayers, which will be attached to trucks placed on the train.
Power sprayers
The power sprayers will allow the insecticide to be sprayed around 60 metres on both sides of the track.
South Delhi Mayor Kamaljeet Sehrawat, member of the Standing Committee Bhupender Gupta, and divisional railway manager R. N. Singh jointly flagged off the train from platform number-1 of the New Delhi railway station.
“The insecticide will be sprayed from 7 a.m. on both sides of the track to eliminate the menace of mosquitoes. This preventive measure will go a long way in protecting thousands of people from chikungunya and dengue,” Ms. Sehrawat said.
“This will not only eliminate larvae but also neutralise mosquitoes. This will also provide relief to a large number of residents living in slum clusters along railway tracks, which cannot be reached by road,” she added.
The train will also pass through areas under the North and East Delhi Municipal Corporations, on Sunday and Monday. The spraying will particularly be helpful in killing mosquitoes that breed in the water collected on the sides of tracks.
On Friday, the special train covered areas around the New Delhi railway station, Hazrat Niazamuddin, Lajpat Nagar, Sewa Nagar, Lodi Colony, Delhi Safdarjang, Patel Nagar and Sadar Bazar.
On Saturday, the train will Sadar Bazar, Sarai Rohilla, Patel Nagar, Delhi Cantonement, Palam and Gurugram.
