Urban News

Hindustan Times  16.09.2010

MCD roped in fire tenders to power spray larvicides — insecticides specifically targeted against the larval life-stage of mosquitoes — on stagnant water, which has accumulated alongside NH-24 because of overflowing of River Yamuna. The stagnant water has become massive breeding grounds for mosquitoes.

“We are hoping to curb the reproduction of mosquitoes by killing the larvae. Whenever the water becomes still, mosquitoes generate. As this is mostly dirty water, they have become breeding grounds for anopheles or culex mosquitoes, which are not dengue causing but are a nuisance nonetheless,” said Dr V.K. Monga, chairman of MCD's public health committee.

“We carried out the operation almost 100 metres into the riverside. The Indo-Tibetan Border Police is also helping the MCD remove the growth of weeds and shrubs underwater. This will help the larvicides do their job as mosquito breeding occurs on waterbeds,” he said.  “Our strategy is not multi-fold. To curb larvae growth, we are spraying larvicides on the waterbeds.

For the open spaces we are carrying out fogging exercises and for closed spaces such as rooms and stadiums, we are using synthetic pyrithride, which is the ultimate solution to fight the mosquitoes.”

With the rains showing no sign of relenting and dengue cases spiralling by the hour, the MCD fears dengue cases will cross 3,666 — as it occurred in 2006.

Hindustan Times  16.09.2010

Meira Bhatia counsel for Common Cause, an NGO, which filed a PIL to shift illegal dairies from the city said: “This is for the third time that the MCD has sought an extension since May 2007 from the same court. The previous court orders have become infructuous with the municipal corporation asking for another extension.”

The MCD has filed an application in the court stating that it needs another year to develop Ghogha Dairy Colony, where 2,080 plots are available.

The civic agency claimed that it has sought applications from dairy owners for allotments.

Earlier, 1,373 dairy owners had applied for allotments. However, 850 applicants were found to be bogus. 

The counsel for the civic body told the court that because of certain inevitable conditions, the process of relocating illegal dairies was not completed. 

Bhatia, however, counterargued that the civic agency is dilly dallying the relocation process and just covering up its failures.

In 2002, while hearing a public interest litigation filed by the same NGO,  the court had directed the MCD to relocate the dairies from urban areas in the city to tackle the menace of stray cattle.