In view of the Northeast monsoon, the Directorate of Public Health (DPH) and Preventive Medicine is intensifying vector control measures to prevent vector-borne diseases, such as dengue and chikungunya as well as measures to prevent leptospirosis and scrub typhus.
The directorate has instructed health officers to strengthen vector control measures in all rural areas, town panchayats, municipalities and corporations to prevent transmission of diseases.
Mosquito control should be done comprehensively so that all vectors for malaria, filaria, dengue, chikungunya and even Japanese Encephalitis are controlled. In the recent past, cases of Japanese Encephalitis (JE) were reported after heavy rain and cyclones in certain districts of the State. Having this in mind, wells adjoining paddy fields and field wells should be checked in the post-monsoon period and necessary control measures should be taken to prevent breeding of the JE vector, the directorate noted.
Issuing guidelines for vector control, the DPH listed out measures to be taken on a war footing — district and block-level rapid response teams should be planned and made available and sufficient numbers of domestic breeding checkers as per the population of the habitat and terrain should be available. Health officers should ensure that the rapid response team has the required equipment and insecticides for anti-larval and anti-adult mosquito measures.
Vacant sites/lands should be monitored routinely as they are potential mosquito breeding sources since broken containers, bottles, tyres and tea cups are disposed here. All large campuses, government buildings should be free from mosquito breeding by conducting intense fogging operations and source reduction activities. Peri-domestic areas in residential localities should also be monitored. Routine mass cleaning should be insisted up on in market places, and schools and colleges identified as temporary shelters for people in rain-affected areas should be checked.
All hospitals should be monitored and kept free from mosquito breeding sources. The Deputy Director of Health Services should strengthen surveillance and monitor the fever and dengue situation on a daily basis.
