The Mangalore City Corporation on Friday began an awareness campaign on malaria and dengue in the city. The first of the programme was held at Gujarati School while the second one was held for the hotel workers.

The corporation will involve the National Service Scheme students and carry out a door-to-door awareness drive.

The corporation organised the programme for hotel workers in association with the Dakshina Kannada Hotel and Restaurant Association on the Hotel Woodlands premises.

Mayor Gulzaar Banu inaugurated the programme.

The highlight of the programme was distribution of mosquito nets to around 50 employees working in different hotels. “Each of the hotel owners will be distributing mosquito nets to employees separately,” said association’s president Kudbi Jagadish Shenoy.

Mobile lab

The association on Friday launched the mobile malaria testing laboratory. “This vehicle will be going to each of the hotels in the city and carry out test for malaria,” Mr. Shenoy said.

Association vice-presidenet Swarna Sunder said the mobile laboratory would be exclusively used for the hotel employees. The Mangala Hospital has agreed to provide staff to run the mobile laboratory, Mr. Sunder said.

Corporation In-charge Health Officer C.M. Sudarshan said sleeping under the mosquito nets was the best way to prevent malaria. “Sleeping inside the mosquito net decreases transmission of malaria by about 90 per cent,” Dr. Sudershan said. It was necessary for people to be aware of ways to prevent breeding of mosquitoes that transmit malaria and dengue.

Dr. Sudarshan said spread of malaria had nothing to do with disposal of solid waste as the mosquitoes transmitting malaria and dengue breed in fresh water.

Corporation Joint Commissioner Srikanth Rao said stern action by the civic body on the hotels and construction sites last month had drastically brought out the number of malaria cases. The number of malaria affected people had come down from 610 in June to 413 in July.Mr. Rao said the door-to-door malaria awareness campaign would start shortly.