Tackle dengue effectively

As monsoon clouds tend to weaken, citizens in the national capital region have to face the after effects of good rains this year. While the menace of dengue has become a regular feature in Delhi and its suburbs, the problem this time around is rather grave and may assume more serious proportions if the authorities do not get their act together and tackle mosquito breeding, more so in the dingy lanes of un-regularised colonies. In the absence of proper sewage system and apathy on the part of both the municipal corporations and the Delhi government, mosquito breeding is increasing, helped by heaps of garbage which lie more outside the collection centres than inside. Stray animals, feeding on garbage, add to the health hazards of the people living in these colonies spread in all parts of the mega city, be it south or north.

More dengue cases have been detected in south Delhi than in other areas. This may be because the south Delhi Corporation is active enough at least to take a count of the cases. While fogging teams from the corporations are going randomly to select places, the effort in prevention and checking vector breeding must be done in a much more coordinated manner. The last thing Delhiites expect, at least while dealing with dengue threat, is the politics between the BJP and the Aam Aadmi Party. Even if they are bothered about scoring brownie points, let them do the same by taking effective steps on the ground. Good thing is that at least a Dengue Control Cell (DCC) has been set up this year for coordinating the work related to different agencies.The World Health Organisation has warned that of all the disease-transmitting insects, mosquitoes pose the biggest threat of spreading malaria, dengue and yellow fever. While the DCC has sought active cooperation from the residents themselves, massive contact programmes between the agencies and the welfare associations must be launched to spread awareness about prevention of dengue and medically correct ways to deal with the disease. Rather than showing them a stick at a later stage, the state government should take private hospitals on board along with preparing the government hospitals for the menace. Testing kits should be made available at affordable prices and the AAP government’s much touted ‘Mohalla Clinics’ must be roped in as well. In fact, the state should speed up this programme and open more of such clinics, because the progress in this regard is well below the targets announced with much fanfare. The Union government too should extend a helping hand.