Dengue larvae found in ‘cleared’ area

The third party survey claims that the RDA anti-dengue surveillance was a sham

RAWALPINDI: A third party survey ordered by the Rawalpindi Deputy Commissioner Anwarul Haq found dengue larvae from six places which had been earlier checked and declared clear by the Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA).

The third party survey claimed that the RDA anti-dengue surveillance was a sham. Sources told The Express Tribune that RDA teams had surveyed a housing society on Adiyala Road and filed a report that no dengue larvae were found in the area.

Dengue outbreak 2019: what went right?

However, DC Haq directed Civil Defence Department (CDD) to form a third party survey team and recheck the area. Subsequently, the CDD teams went to the said housing society and during inspection found dengue larvae in water tanks and drums in six homes. After collecting samples, the CDD teams eliminated the rest of the dengue larvae.

Meanwhile, Rawalpindi Waste Management Company (RWMC) has urged people to throw trash at designated places and avoid storing water in open tanks or drums so as to prevent reproduction of dengue mosquitos.

RWMC Managing Director Owais Manzoor Tarar said garbage and overgrown grass and bushes were being cleared from empty plots on daily basis to prevent growth of dengue mosquitos. 

Published in The Express Tribune, June 3^rd, 2020.