Anti-larvae drives: KMC teams to visit construction sites

Kolkata Municipal Corporation's (KMC) Health department workers attached with different boroughs have been asked to visit construction sites to ensure that larvae of vector-borne diseases are not found in the water that are stored there or have got accumulated.

The KMC will give notices to the builders if mosquito larvae are found in the construction sites and will ask them to clean the containers where water is kept at least once a week. Failing which, stern action will be taken against them.

A high-level meeting to discuss the matter was held in borough I. It was chaired by Atin Ghosh, member, Mayor-in-Council (Health). Debashis Biswas, chief vector control officer and Dr T K Mukherjee, adviser health were present.

The medical officers and vector control in charge of all the wards attended the meeting. The KMC has so far taken 10 such meetings.

Meetings that are yet to be held in boroughs II, III, IV, XII, XV and XVI will be organised shortly.

It has often been found that construction workers store water in huge containers to facilitate construction. But the containers are not cleaned and they serve as the breeding ground for mosquitoes. The construction sites are potential threats and the builders will be asked to clean the containers at least once a week.

The KMC has geared up and decided to conduct regular anti-larvae drives in the city at the onset of monsoon. It may be mentioned that there was not a single case of dengue in 144 wards of the city which is under KMC.

The state Urban Development department has pulled up seven urban local bodies including Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation for their failure to take up anti-larvae drives.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has given special emphasis on the control of the spread of dengue and malaria and has instructed the Urban Development department to take up the matter seriously with the civic bodies.