CM gives 5-point action plan for RWAs to combat dengue

New Delhi: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal participated in an interactive session with the Resident Welfare Assocciations (RWAs) at the Talkatora Stadium. He announced a "5-point action plan" for RWAs in the fight against dengue under the–10 Hafte 10 Baje 10 Minute–an initiative that he has been actively participating in. He also announced that the Delhi government is setting up a new framework for a fruitful collaboration between the RWAs and the government.

The Chief Minister appreciated the contribution of RWAs and tweeted, "I am confident RWAs will play an important role in the city's fight against dengue." Supporting Kejriwal's initiative, Deputy CM Manish Sisodia said, "Dengue has declined in the last five years which proves that the people of Delhi have become aware. My family and I suffered from dengue last year. I was very happy when the Chief Minister's campaign was initiated."

Kejriwal said, "We did not expect such tremendous results through our #10Hafte10Baje10Minute initiative in the city. We were told by several experts that dengue repeats its cycle in every three to four years, we did witness the consequences of dengue in the year 2015. There were more than 15,000 cases of dengue and 60 unfortunate deaths that year. My team and I were constantly traveling back and forth to ensure there were sufficient facilities available in our hospitals. This is when we realized we have to gather the support of our people, our citizens. It only takes 10 minutes to ensure your house is clear of any stagnant water, and that's where we came up with the concept of #10Hafte10Baje10Minute. We did not expect such huge support from the people."

"The huge public participation in the campaign has eradicated Dengue from city to a large extent. Only 221 cases of dengue have been reported in Delhi till Monday this year. In 2015, there were 15,000 cases. 60 people were killed. Last year, there were 2,800 cases," he added.

5-point plan: The RWAs have to ensure that the government's pamphlet on dengue prevention measures reach every household in their localities. Dengue-free sticker has to be delivered to every household. People can paste the sticker after inspecting their homes for clean and stagnant water on every Sundays to notify others that their house is dengue free. They can also spread the message to inspect the houses on their WhatsApp groups to encourage people to inspect their houses for dengue on Sundays. Every RWA has to issue circulars and ask residents to check their house at 10 am every Sunday. After inspecting their homes, RWA officials have to go to their area and convince the residents to inspect their houses at 10 am every Sunday.