A day after he fined a theatre for failing to check mosquito breeding, a Deputy Collector took the audience watching Mersal by surprise as he walked into the cinema hall along with a group of government staff to distribute nilavembu kudineer and spoke to them about ways to keep mosquitoes at bay.
It was on Wednesday that S. Jayaprakash, Deputy Collector and District Backward Classes Welfare Officer, imposed a fine of ₹5,000 each on two adjoining theatres in Vaniyambadi town – Vijay Theatre and Shivaji Theatre – for failing to check mosquito breeding sources.
On Thursday, he returned to Vijay Theatre to ensure that they removed the breeding sources. At about 11.30 a.m., a few minutes after the screening of actor Vijay-starrer Mersal had commenced, the official walked into the cinema hall to meet the audience after stopping the screening for a few minutes.
“We went to check if they had cleared the sources. We also went inside the cinema hall, and distributed n i lavembu kudineer to about 70 persons. We wanted to create awareness among the audience, and the response was good. They did not mind that the screening was stopped for a few minutes. They were happy to listen to us, and did not think that it was unnecessary when they had come to a theatre for entertainment,” Mr. Jayaprakash said. As the audience sipped into cups of n i lavembu kudineer , the official spoke to them about how the dengue-spreading mosquito breeds in clean water.
Mr. Jayaprakash called for a change in the mindset among people to not only check their houses but also ensure that their surroundings and public places were clean and free from water stagnation and breeding sources.
