36% of all mosquito breeding happens in desert coolers: MCD
An MCD official said 3,000 domestic breeding checkers and 2,000 field workers are undertaking a special drive.
Amid the current spike in dengue cases across the Capital, an analysis by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) has revealed that more than a third of mosquito breeding sites in the city were found at desert coolers.
With heavy rainfall and floods in July, the current dengue count in Delhi of 348 as on August 5 is highest over at least the past decade for the corresponding period. The city witnessed its worst dengue outbreak in 2015, when 15,867 cases and 60 deaths were reported due to dengue.
According to MCD’s analysis, 36.5% of mosquito breeding sites with larvae were found in desert coolers, 29% in flower pots and vases, 13% in overhead tanks, and 10.9% at construction sites.
MCD said its domestic breeding checkers and field workers have detected 12,000-16,000 mosquito breeding sites on a weekly basis over the last one month, with 142,206 sites found with mosquito larvae as on August 5 — more than double the number for the corresponding period in 2022 and 2021 at 69,549 and 63,280 sites, respectively.
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The civic body in an official statement called the statistic alarming. “MCD appeals to citizens to prevent water stagnation in and around their house so that mosquitoes cannot breed,” an MCD spokesperson said.
An MCD official said 3,000 domestic breeding checkers and 2,000 field workers are undertaking a special drive for the detection of breeding sites. “This year, 661,709 houses have been sprayed with insecticides. We have also resorted to legal enforcement for prevention of mosquito breeding as per provision under Malaria Bye Laws of DMC Act. MCD has issued 92,590 legal notices and 22,018 people have been prosecuted on this count. We will intensify the legal enforcement to check the rise in mosquito breeding,” the official said.