The Delhi government has begun its preparations, in advance, to deal with dengue in order to avert the crisis experienced last year. Health Minister Satyendar Jain, addressing reporters on Friday, said that the preventive measures have already been put in place by the government.
Dr Sunil Raheja, who has been appointed by the government to oversee preventive measures in the city, stated that a dedicated dengue control cell will be formed and an inter-sectorial agency will be created that will ensure proper coordination between major stakeholders of dengue control system like MCDs, PWD and government schools.
Having faced massive crisis last year, the former Medical Superintendent of GB Pant Hospital mentioned that this time around the preparations will be at ground level.
The main priorities of the government would include mapping to identify the highly vulnerable areas of Delhi, sensitisation of doctors and spreading of knowledge among the citizens. Besides these procedures, the government has assigned the Domestic Breeding Checkers (DBC’S) to prevent growth of mosquito larvae.
Responding to the Steps taken to prevent the crisis, the Health Minister said: “Dengue is not a panic-driven disease and the crisis can be managed with citizens’ initiatives and awareness than completely relying on government measures.”
Mentioning that it takes a cycle of 8-10 days for the growth of larvae, Jain said that the eggs can easily be removed by sheer vigilance of citizens. Highlighting that larvae grows in stagnant water, he urged that water must not be stored in plastic containers and coolers and pots must be cleaned once a week.
He also mentioned that it has been observed in their study that the working-class population, between 15 and 45 years, were most affected in 2015 and therefore, the government will try to create awareness among these groups.