Door-to-door checking of breeding of larvae to begin as dengue cases rise

Delhi’s Health Minister, Saurabh Bharadwaj, announced on Tuesday that all municipal bodies within the city have been instructed to deploy dengue control workers to conduct door-to-door inspections for mosquito larvae breeding in households.

In the past week, Delhi has registered 105 new dengue cases, bringing the total to nearly 350, according to a report issued by the municipal corporation on Monday.

“We have allocated five percent of hospital beds for dengue patients and directed hospitals to make specific arrangements for this. The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), Delhi Cantonment Board, and New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) have been tasked with sending personnel to residences to inspect and address mosquito breeding sites,” Bharadwaj explained to PTI Video.

Without explicitly naming anyone, the Delhi health minister expressed concern that a previously planned awareness campaign’s advertisements have not been released intentionally.

“This appears to be a deliberate act, possibly part of a conspiracy to hinder awareness efforts, resulting in increased vulnerability and impact. Despite consistent reminders, newspapers and television are not running the advertisements. The ’10 Hafte-10 Baje-10 Minute’ campaign has not been reinstated,” he alleged.

Bharadwaj questioned the reasons behind the alleged inaction and conspiracy among officials and linked it to the repercussions of the Delhi Services Bill, suggesting it has greatly harmed the people of Delhi. The Delhi Services Bill gained parliamentary approval on Monday, granting the Centre control over the capital’s bureaucracy.

Bharadwaj’s comments arrive amid a rising number of dengue cases in Delhi. The city documented 243 instances of the vector-borne ailment by July 28.

The most recent report from the Municipal Corporation of Delhi reveals the tally had increased to 348 by August 5. The report also stated that 85 malaria cases were recorded from January 1 to August 5.

Dengue cases for July numbered 121, 40 for June, and 23 for May. The 105 new cases reported in August occurred within the initial five days of the month.

(With PTI inputs)