KMC gears up to launch awareness on vector-borne diseases from next week

The Health department of Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) is gearing up to launch a massive anti-dengue and malaria drive from next week.

A meeting to review the work done in the borough level was held on Wednesday where the plan to carry out the programme scheduled for the next week was chalked out.

It was decided that KMC teams will visit various office complexes to inspect whether the garbage is being cleared regularly. It is often found that the offices do not clean the garbage everyday and allow the garbage to pile up. In such cases, the civic authorities will make arrangements to remove the garbage and impose a charge on the errant office.

It may be recalled that the civic team had spotted garbage in different state-run hospitals and arrangements were made to remove them daily. Usually, Atin Ghosh, member, Mayor-in-Council (Health) is present during the drives. The KMC is carrying out anti-larvae drives throughout the year. The Health department workers in every ward visit the houses and inspect the underground reservoirs. If mosquito larvae are found, they give notices to the owners of the buildings in cases of individual ownership and residents' associations in cases of apartments requesting them to clean the underground reservoirs and ensure that the overhead tanks and underground reservoirs are properly covered. Senior civic officials said in many houses, the overhead tanks and underground reservoirs are not covered properly and as the water is not cleaned at regular intervals, it becomes a mosquito breeding ground.

They said , people have been requested not to store water in buckets for more than three days at a stretch and clean the containers at least twice a week. "But despite repeated requests, few house owners do not follow it meticulously. They have also been asked to clean flower vases and other pots where water is stored at least once a week," they maintained.

Meanwhile, KMC's Health department has launched an app to create awareness to combat dengue and malaria. In case any person is suffering from fever, the app can be downloaded to get information about the health clinics run by KMC where blood tests are done free of cost and medicines are also given for free.

Senior civic officials said KMC follows WHO's prescribed dose to combat malaria but "as from blood tests to treatment everything is free, many people feel that the treatment offered in KMC clinics are sub-standard. But to treat malaria, these clinics are best and there are blood collection centres in all the 144 wards," the officials maintained.