The eastern hilly tract of the district had been reporting more cases of dengue fever recently. In June alone, 31 cases were reported taking the cumulative figures from January up to June 18 to 80. Last year, only 40 cases of dengue fever were reported from January to June.
The District Medical Officer Dr. V. Jayashree told The Hindu that Kottapady, Vengola, Varapetty, Mookannoor, Angamali and Edakkattuvayil areas reported more dengue cases. The Ades egypti mosquito, which is the vector for the disease had been found breeding in the water holes in cocoa trees and dried peels of nutmeg, she added
The mosquito breeds in fresh water puddles that get collected in small natural cups in the vegetation.
Meanwhile, a Health official from Thiruvananthapuram visited West Kochi on Thursday to inspect the increasing number of diarrhoeal diseases reported from the area.
The ORT (Oral Rehydration Therapy) Officer Dr. Manjula visited the area and the hospital to file a report on the diarrhoeal cases. It was reported earlier by the district medical officer (DMO) that availability of clean drinking water was scarce in West Kochi as the piped water supply to the area was contaminated as supply pipes were old and developed leaks.
