Dengue cases continue to rise in Rawalpindi
As many as seven more dengue cases were reported in Potohar Town Rawalpindi during the last 24 hours, raising the tally of confirmed cases to 86 in the district.
This was stated by District Coordinator Epidemics Prevention and Control (DCEPC) Dr Sajjad Mehmood on Monday.
He said that among the new cases, four were reported from Chak Jalaldin and one each from Dhama Syedan, Kulail and Girja in the Potohar Town area.
Dr Sajjad added that around 86 confirmed cases had been reported in the district this year, including 44 from Potohar Town urban area, 13 from Kahuta, seven from Rawalpindi Cantonment, six from Municipal Corporation Rawalpindi, four from Chaklala Cantonment, two from Taxila Cantonment while Gujar Khan, Taxila rural and Potohar rural areas reported one patient each.
He further said that three cases were reported from outside districts in Rawalpindi.
The health officer confirmed that surveillance was underway to detect the existence of dengue larvae, while strict actions were also taken against dengue SOPs violators.
Dr Sajjad said the district administration had sealed 327 premises, registered 814 FIRs, issued challans to 997, notices to 4,827, and a fine of over Rs2.6 million was imposed on violations of SOPs in various areas of the district from January 1, 2022 till date.
He reminded that prevailing weather was suitable for breeding dengue larvae and asked citizens to remove stagnant water from outdoor and household settings to stop mosquitoes from breeding after rain and submerged water.
The health officer urged the residents to keep their water tanks clean and not to let any amount of water collect as a pool or puddle, as the accumulation of water after rain was a major cause of mosquito-borne diseases, including dengue fever.
Published in The Express Tribune, August 16th, 2022.