Obstructing dengue campaign made cognisable offence

DCO says FIR will be registered against anybody obstructing in the campaign.

LAHORE:

An FIR will be registered against any person who obstructs the dengue campaign, District Coordination Officer Noorul Amin Mengal announced on Thursday.

Directing the city district government (CDGL) officials to ensure that facilities and equipment were available to all the town administrations, the DCO said that the next two months were crucial in terms of controlling the dengue mosquito larvae. He was presiding over a meeting on the anti-dengue campaign with city district government and Health Department officials on Thursday.

He said Eid leaves of officials concerned could be cancelled owing to the condition and the need of the hour.

Special Assistant to Chief Minister Khwaja Salman Rafique, assistant commissioners, EDOs, TMOs, DDOs, Agriculture Department officials and entomologists were also present.

Mengal directed the officials concerned to form special teams for the inspection of graveyards and covering of water pots and ditches in the graveyards. The CDGL, he said, will provide five tractor-trolleys of sand to each town for the purpose.

He directed the union council secretaries to cooperate with the dengue squads in spraying and fogging of their union councils.

Mengal said that a duty roster should be prepared of all workers participating in the anti-dengue campaign. Those found absent would be arrested, he said.

He directed the chief public relations officer to put up banners and steamers at prominent places in the city within 24 hours to create public awareness about dengue.

He said a minimum of 5,000 banners should be displayed behind rikshaws for the next two months. He said that a Toyota Hilux each will be provided to all DDOs for two months to improve mobility.

Also on Thursday, the DCO suspended a Data Ganj Bakhsh Town sanitary inspector, Asghar Ali, for not cooperating with the town entomologist and ordered an inquiry into the matter.

He also ordered registration of an FIR against DDO Akhtar Gujjar for not leaving charge despite issuance of transfer orders.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 17^th, 2012.