Delhi: Mosquito-borne diseases plummet in NDMC areas
Delhi: Mosquito-borne diseases plummet in NDMC areas (Photo/IANS)
New Delhi: With the sustained efforts made by the Health Department of the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) with respect to prevention and control of dengue and other vector-borne diseases, the number of such cases has decreased considerably in comparison to the last two years, said a senior official.
In Delhi, mosquito-borne diseases are on the rise. In the last one week, 40 new cases of dengue, 11 cases of malaria and 10 cases of chikungunya have been reported from different parts of the Capital, taking the tally over 212.
Medical Officer Dr Ramesh Kumar said that as per the comparative report of three years on vector-borne diseases, the numbers of cases registered for dengue this year are only 22, considerably less than the previous two years wherein the figures were 81 in 2018 and 52 in 2019.
This year the number of malaria cases are eight while only four cases of chikungunya have been reported. In 2018 and 2019, the malaria cases were 49 and 44 respectively, added Dr Kumar. The civic body administers the Lutyens' Delhi area, among others.
At the outset, the New Delhi Municipal Council regularly conducts anti-larva checking drive, in which teams have been visited and checked 4,27,970 houses and premises and found 1,636 premises with larva till date.
The health department team members are also focusing on the presence of overhead tanks without covers or other water containers, prone to larva breeding. After the checking of 8,36,480 water containers, only 3,514 were found positive for larva.
The NDMC has issued 2,894 notices this year while 3112 and 2819 notices were issued in 2018 and 2019 respectively.
During 2018 and 2019, the numbers of challans issued were 124 and 108 respectively while this year just 163 challans have been issued.
The civic body is also distributing pamphlets on do's and don'ts to sensitise people on prevention of vector-borne diseases. The NDMC has sent 50,000 SMS every week to residents regarding actions to be taken to contain the spread of mosquito-breeding in their neighbourhoods.