The Hindu 24.11.2009
Mosquito density up in urban areas
Ramya Kannan
CHENNAI: The bad news is that the density of mosquitoes, primarily in urban and peri-urban areas in the State, has gone up, in a comparative analysis over the last six months. According to the classic 10 man hour density test, there has been a steady build-up over the last six months in Tamil Nadu.
However, the good news is that these mosquitoes are mostly ‘nuisance’ mosquitoes, unlikely to cause major vector-borne diseases like malaria, dengue, and chikungunya. “This is because when we say the density of adult mosquitoes is up, we mean the Culex variety. In fact, the density of the malaria causing Anopheles mosquito is actually less than normal for the season,” S. Elango, Director of Public Health, told The-Hindu.
Some of the Chennai Corporation wards, the areas under the Corporation of Coimbatore, Erode, Tiruvannamalai, Madurai Corporation zones, Theni and the municipal corporation area of Tuticorin are the places where the 10 man hours test has shown an increase. “It is by no means an alarming increase, but a gradual build-up over a period of six months,” Dr. Elango added.
Public health officials, however, caution that public should take adequate precautions to avoid infestation.
