'Take up drives to prevent dengue'

Kolkata: The Health department of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) has urged various state government agencies to take up cleanliness drives on a regular basis to prevent the breeding of dengue mosquitoes in their office premises.

Member Mayor-in-Council (health) Atin Ghosh on Thursday held a meeting with top officials of these agencies after the civic body team associated with dengue drives in the city found mosquito larvae at a number of offices belonging to these state agencies.

"We have identified some 200 odd places belonging to a number of state agencies where lack of cleanliness and vigil has created a favourable situation for the breeding of dengue mosquitoes. We have destroyed the larvae and at the same time, we have warned them that there should not be negligence on their part in the days to come," Ghosh said.

The meeting was attended by Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority (KMDA), state transport companies like CTC and CSTC that have now come under the single umbrella of West Bengal Transport Corporation (WBTC), fire stations, state Housing Board and Public Works Department (PWD) in the city. Kolkata Police, however, did not attend the meeting on Thursday. "We had specifically pointed out the problem areas and had handed them a list with the details of the places where they need to take up cleanliness drives. They told us about the steps they have already taken," a senior official of the KMC's health department said.

The PWD department which is responsible for the cleanliness of a number of hospitals in the city were advised to take up initiatives for keeping the hospital premises free from garbage, clean up clogged drains and discarded items.