KMC identifies 69 wards for malaria awareness programme
Kolkata: The Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) is undertaking a week-long programme starting from Friday with the aim to raise awareness about malaria protection and eradication.
Observing World Malaria Day on Thursday, Atin Ghosh, KMC deputy mayor and in-charge of the civic body’s Health department, announced the programme that will continue till May 3.
The emphasis of the activities taken up by the Health department will be focused on 69 out of a total of 144 wards that were earmarked as malaria-prone on the basis of positive cases last year.
“The health workers will have to identify at least one breeding ground for Anopheles mosquitoes responsible for causing malaria and destroy the same. There should be serving of at least five notices under 496 (A) in each ward,” Ghosh said at the meeting with concerned officials of his department and borough level officers who joined virtually. The civic authorities first serve a notice to the owner of premises in which stagnant water is found and if they fail to act a notice is served under Section 496A of the KMC Act under which a fine is added to the establishment’s property tax.
The owner, while paying the property tax, has to pay the fine as well. According to Ghosh, 80 per cent of the malaria cases in the city are contributed by the migrant workers and this is a major problem in most metro cities in the country.
“When a patient is detected with malaria, we have to ensure that the person completes the course of medicines prescribed to him. We have to convince them to take medicines properly as the parasite continues to remain inside the body. If the medicine course is not completed, there is a high chance of getting affected with malaria again. Moreover, when an anopheles mosquito bites this person, it transmits the germ inside his body to more people,” Ghosh said.
The other tasks include examining building rooftops and asking people to cover their tanks. Most importantly, conducting a blood test if a person is found to be
affected with fever during door to door visit.
Debashis Biswas, ex-officio chief vector control officer of KMC, said that the NCVDC (National Centre for Vector Borne Diseases Control) has given a call to make the country malaria free.
“Malaria cases have dropped in the city drastically in the last few years. Till date, this year, the malaria cases stand at 176 which is 68 per cent less than the previous years’ figure of 552. Kolkata can show the way to the entire country when it comes to eradicating malaria by 2030,” an optimistic Biswas said.
