Mosquito alert: Health Dept issues dengue alert

Door-to-door surveillance to start to detect dengue larvae

LAHORE: The Health Department has issued a dengue alert as the weather has become hospitable for mosquito breeding.

“People must take all precautionary steps and cover all water containers to prevent mosquitoes from accessing water,” Akhlaq Ali Khan, the Health Department spokesman said.

“The weather is becoming congenial [for dengue larva breeding]. While enjoying the spring weather, people must keep in mind the threat of dengue,” he said. He said that the department had established surveillance committees at town level. “Outdoor committees will issue challans to businesses where stagnant water or open water containers are found. Indoor committees will paste red stickers on doors of homes where larvae are detected,” Khan said.

He said the department had also provided temifox tablets to town surveillance committees for cleaning water.

“Officers of all departments concerned have already taken steps against mosquito breeding so that the situation remains under control during this dengue season,” he said.

Khan said that community participation was vital to deal with the dengue threat.

He said that the Auqaf Department would enlist the help of religious scholars for raising awareness about dengue fever prevention. “Local government representatives have also been asked to help in the campaign at union council level,” he said.

Khan said that a dengue outbreak had been recorded in several areas of Rawalpindi last year. “The government is in contact with the Islamabad Development Authority and the Cantonment Boards to deal with the threat this year,” he said.

Last year in Lahore, only 90 dengue cases were reported.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 11^th, 2016.