Anti-malaria drive takes a hit

Cases of malaria in the city are rising, yet the three municipal bodies have been unable to fumigate several houses in the city to check mosquito breeding.

Cases of malaria in the city are rising, yet the three municipal bodies have been unable to fumigate several houses in the city to check mosquito breeding.

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According to the details provided by the corporations, from January to August only 1.4 lakh households have been sprayed with medicines. The number was 2.5 lakh last year.

The number of visits of domestic breeding checkers (DBC) too has declined to 1.6 crore this year from last year’s 1.7 crore.

Sources say these visits have declined as the residents are apprehensive about allowing these checkers inside their houses. In the past, there have been a few instances of robberies in which the criminals pretended to be DBCs.

“Many-a-time, DBCs are not allowed inside a home, specially if there is only a woman in the house. That is why the numbers have dropped,” said Mahender Nagpal, leader of the North Corporation house. Many also cite MCD’s trifurcation and shortage of staff for the problem.

The corporations are also suffering from a crunch in the number of medicine sprays. They have also lost the fish that feed on larvae in fresh water bodies. Only nine of the originally 139 fresh water bodies still have fish.

Till August 11, 122 cases of malaria have been reported. The city witnessed 63 cases in 2009 and 20 in 2010, but the figure rose to 88 in 2011.

According to the corporations, however, the numbers are higher because lab reports are being included for the first time. “Earlier, only records from hospitals were taken into consideration,” said an official.

He said that the corporation will soon step up operations to counter vector-borne diseases.