The Hindu 26.09.2013
Corporation reports fall in dengue cases in city
In August and September (till 25th) the Corporation has seen a reduction in the number of dengue cases.
According
to Corporation Commissioner G. Latha, the fall comes even after the
civic body had initiated measures to ensure that no dengue case goes
unreported. And also after the Corporation had taken steps to reduce
mosquito breeding sources, appointed workers on contract to do the work
and worked extensively in high-risk areas.
In July,
the Corporation prepared a micro plan to ensure that workers engaged for
fogging, spraying of Bacillus thuringiensis and using abate followed a
timetable, executed the work and received acknowledgement for the same
from the residents. And the civic body had taken on contract 40 workers,
eight each a zone. The eight workers in each zone functioned as a team,
visited a ward a day and carried out the aforementioned operations.
They also obtained the residents’ signatures as a proof of their
carrying out the work. And while obtaining the signatures the workers
also obtained the mobile phone numbers, which the sanitary inspectors,
zonal sanitary officers and other senior officials used for
verification.
The team also carried out source
reduction operations like removing coconut shells, unused tyres, plastic
containers, etc. that stored water for mosquitoes to breed.
Door-to-door campaigns were also conducted to create awareness among the
public.
Ms. Latha said that the action the
Corporation had taken had ensured that there were no new cases from the
high-risk areas (see graphic).
The Corporation did
not stop with that, though. It had also engaged multipurpose health
workers from the office of the Deputy Director of Health Services to
carryout source reduction operations. Plus, with the help of District
Entomologist, the Corporation had also conducted training for its
workers. It has planned to engage National Service Scheme volunteers to
carry out awareness drive and had arranged for display of slides in
cinemas.
Ms. Latha said that the Corporation had also
constituted teams to tackle medical emergencies and address issues that
follows monsoon.