Prevention better than cure to ward off dengue

With the outbreak of dengue in tricity, there is a need to intensify preventive measures. Prevention depends mainly on protection from the bites of the mosquito that transmits the disease which can be done by eliminating its breeding ground. This can be done by emptying stagnant water from containers, old tyres, trash cans and flower pots. Limiting exposure to mosquitoes by wearing fully covered clothes and staying indoors two hours after sunrise and before sunset can help. The Health Department must carry out fogging and spraying on a large scale along with surveying the vulnerable and high-risk areas. Distribution of mosquito coils and medicines to sanitise the accumulated water, cleaning dirty lanes and creating awareness about the importance of hygiene should also be done. Also, students can be engaged to spread awareness about dengue in different areas through posters, pamphlets, newspapers and radio. Mass campaigns would also help attain this motive to some extent.

Dr Shruti K Chawla, Chandigarh

Take preventive measures

One can prevent outbreak of diseases like dengue, malaria and viral fever by taking measures like using mosquito repellents and nets, installing screen on doors and windows, wearing full sleeve clothes and keeping oneself hydrated throughout the day. To prevent the breeding of mosquitoes, the civic authorities may add kerosene/petrol wherever there is stagnant water. Anti-larva spray and fogging should be done frequently. The residents welfare associations must check the insanitary conditions and stagnant water in their sector and take preventive steps to check the occurrence of these diseases.

Nikita Kapur, Chandigarh

Don’t let garbage accumulate

The lackadaisical approach of the Health Department is responsible for the spread of dengue in its present form. The fogging of sectors which should have commenced before the rainy season is yet to start. Waterlogging attracts mosquitoes and it has not caught the imagination of the authorities. The areas under construction need to be checked for mosquito breeding. Keep the surroundings clear and remove the garbage regularly. Elected representatives need to visit sectors.

Wg Cdr JS Bhalla (retd)

Learn from mistakes

The tricity is in the grip of dengue, malaria and viral fever because we refuse to learn from our mistakes or draw lessons from the past. This happens almost every year. The authorities do not adhere to the standing instructions on prevention of these diseases and continue to live with deficiencies in terms of adequate medical staff and infrastructure. As a result, there are late reactions and delayed treatment, with inadequate medicines and doctors.

Col RD Singh (retd), 

Ambala Cantt

Monitor platelet count

Come monsoon and the dengue virus catches people unawares, especially those who have low immunity, resulting in high fever, headache, joint pain and skin rashes. Patients who confront such symptoms should be rushed to a hospital for check-up. If found positive for dengue, the patient should be treated under the supervision of a doctor who monitors his platelet count. If these dip near the 10,000 mark, there is immediate need for transfusion to save the life of the patient.

Harish Kapur, Chandigarh

Practise healthier norms

A solution to the problem remains in our practising the ‘known’ healthier norms. The people are not concerned about their physical well-being. Health and civic authorities do not bother. Dispensaries are just dens for doctors and staff that that eat public money. Besides, educating and motivating the public to adopt better civic sense, upgrading civic conditions and instilling humanitarian spirit among the medical staff holds the key. We understand, therefore, we should bring forth a healthier revolution.

MPS Chadha, Mohali

Cleanliness required

The Administration of the tricity should alert its public health and sanitation departments to activate its manpower and paraphernalia to check the maladies of dengue, malaria and chikungunya on a war footing as its results are unpleasant and unbearable for the public. The clearance of wild bushes and grass, regular fumigation of residential areas and prompt lifting of garbage from the dumping sites is required.

Bhupinder S Sealopal, Mohali

Inform & educate

Informative and educative campaigns are effective tools for promoting dengue prevention. These help people take part actively in controlling the spread of disease. Measures like keeping our surroundings clean, frequent emptying and cleaning of vessels containing water, minimising skin exposure during the day, using mosquito repellents and use of safe insecticides are additional tools that save people from catching the deadly diseases.

Kamalpreet Kaur, Mohali

Create awareness to ward off threat

Dengue has spread in the tricity and various hospitals are treating cases of the disease. Patients are being treated in hospitals. Dengue death toll in the tricity so far is reported to be five, which includes two from Mohali, two from Chandigarh and one from Panchkula. The dengue larvae was found at many places, creating panic among the city residents. There is a need to create awareness among the residents.

M Lal Garg, Chandigarh

Ensure waste management, timely action

Dengue, malaria and viral fever are taking a toll on the health of tricity residents. The health and civic authorities should immediately swing into action. First, the authorities should issue a media advisory informing and educating the residents about the reasons for the outbreak of these diseases, contact details of hospitals in case of a new patient and precautions to be taken to stop them from spreading. Secondly, waste management and its timely disposal should be ensured.

Rajeev Kumar, Chandigarh

Keep surroundings clean

We should believe in preventive measures rather than cure. We are behind schedule but everything has not been lost as of yet. Waterlogging results in the area turning into a breeding ground for mosquitoes. Sustained fogging in the surrounding areas is required. Breeding grounds of mosquitoes should be treated with the required chemicals. People should be educated. To fight the diseases effectively, we should keep the surroundings clean, visit a doctor and get tested if symptoms appear. Streamlining coordination between different departments is missing.

Bharat Bhushan Sharma

Councillors should lead from the front

Knowing full well that the outbreak of these diseases takes place during this season every year, the administration, civic bodies and the Health Department are always found wanting when it comes to checking these diseases which snuff valuable lives every year. The councillors, instead of planning study tours and blaming each other for lapses, should be assigned the work of intensifying fogging and fumigation, both in urban and rural areas, along with improving sanitary conditions.

AS Ahuja, Chandigarh

Officials not serious enough

Every year, tricity residents suffer from dengue and other diseases. Many patients die of these diseases, still the authorities do not show enough seriousness to ensure proper sanitation, acquiring sufficient testing kits, deploying specialist medical officers and other related staff in hospitals and dispensaries. The health authorities should have got it done well in time and the MC authorities, on the other hand, should have ensured proper cleanliness.

HBS Batra, Mohali

Remedial measures, not proactive approach, needed

The cases of malaria, dengue and viral fever get reported every year during the same period. The places that serve as a breeding ground for mosquitoes are known to the health authorities and the people in general. It is the way work is done that matters. The problem needs a proactive approach and not just remedial measures. The remedial action needed to curb the problem can be planned and started on time.

Wg Cdr Jasbir Singh Minhas (retd), Mohali

Residents should cooperate

Dengue crisis in the tricity threatens to deepen further.  Residents are in a state of apprehension. The civic and health authorities failed to take adequate measures to deal with fogging and spraying stagnant pools of water with chemicals to destroy the larvae. They should not wait for an outbreak of the disease to act. However, we can fight the diseases together. For this, it is important that residents cooperate and adopt a proactive approach. People should take preventive measures to deal with the diseases.

Vidya Sager Garg, Panchkula

Learn a lesson from Sri Lanka

Regular cleaning and sanitising of open flow of sewerage and garbage dumping sites is needed. Hospitals and their disposable waste material need dire sanitary attention. Fumigating the roads, streets and houses at regular intervals is required. The UT Administration has to perform its duties attentively. India has to study, learn and follow the strict procedures adopted by a ‘malaria-free’ Sri Lanka, declared so by the World Health Organisation (WHO).

Sham Murari Sharma, Chandigarh

Deploy specialists to tackle diseases

This is not the first time that such drastic diseases have affected the residents of tricity. But the health and civic authorities are not serious as usual. Hospitals and dispensaries should have a separate OPD for such patients and specialists should be deployed to attend to such patients. The hospitals and dispensaries should have sufficient stock of medicines and test kits, besides displaying banners listing dos and don’ts.

Balbir Singh Batra, Mohali

Clean vases immediately

It is shameful that the health and civic authorities are least bothered about taking necessary steps to check the growing cases of dengue, malaria and viral fever in the city. The public must not wait for the government officials to act and take steps to control the spread of these diseases on their own. They should see that there is no flower vase that contains stagnant water. They must clean it immediately.

RK Kapoor, Chandigarh

Publicise prevention

It is a matter of concern that the residents of City Beautiful are fast falling prey to the deadly dengue. Day after day, the number of victims is increasing. This is a big challenge for the Health Department.  To control this deadly disease, I suggest that wide publicity should be given to its prevention. Pamphlets can be distributed among each house through the newspapers.

Ujagar Singh, Chandigarh

Officials should conduct surprise checks

I am of the firm opinion that the Health Department is responsible for a rise in cases of dengue. The department must have taken necessary steps to prevent the disease during this season. The department is also responsible for not taking interest in advance action. More important is that there should be frequent surprise checks by the senior officials of the department to check the ground reality.

Tarlok Singh, Mani Majra

People should cooperate with Administration

There is nothing new about dengue and the government is sincere enough to highlight the preventive measures and the harm caused by this disease using every form of the media. The rising number of dengue cases is due to carelessness towards the cleanliness of our surroundings. It can only be prevented with cooperation between the Administration and the general public as continuous fogging and a tidy environment will help in reducing the number of cases.

Surinder Paul Wadhwa, Mohali

Spray DDT in each house

Just  issuing  of guidelines  to  the  public  as  to  what  they should do and what  not, both  in print  and  electronic media , by  the  Health Department, every  year, is  not  enough to  prevent  the spread  of   malaria  and  dengue  as  it  has  not  helped  much. The rise in such cases are a testimony to this ploy. Spraying of DDT in each house should be the target.

SC Luthra, Mani Majra

Impose heavy penalty for dereliction of duty

People should be sensitised to the cause and effect of dengue and malaria. There should be heavy penalty/punishment for those who do not follow the instructions of the Administration, officials and elected representatives of the Municipal Corporation and are guilty of dereliction of duty. You will not find even a single case of dengue and malaria in town.

Mashwinder Singh

Fine violators

The Administration should ensure that proper cleaning of tanks and garbage from drains is done and that the tanks are properly covered. The checks must be carried out properly. Violators must be fined and the penalty hiked. People not found guilty of violations should be rewarded by giving them priority in government offices.

Pradyumn Gupta, Chandigarh

Inspect sensitive localities

Issue an advisory for the general public about the danger signs of dengue, viral fever and curative as well as preventive steps to be taken. Also, publicise telephone numbers and e-mail addresses of officials to be intimated about stagnant water and other insanitary conditions and action to be taken by the officials and residents on notice of such complaint. Health officials should inspect sensitive localities and carry out intensive fogging.

Tejinder Singh Kalra, Mohali

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Comment | Nitin Jain
Tricity reels under health crisis, but who cares

WITH cases of dengue, malaria and viral spiralling out of control and chikungunya beginning to seize a larger number of people, the tricity—Chandigarh, Mohali and Panchkula—reels under a major health crisis bordering on epidemic proportions.

Instead of swinging into action, the UT Health Department, in a blatant display of insensitivity and ‘we-care-two-hoots’  approach, resorted to the mean tactics of concealing the number of those in grip of the dreaded dengue fever in Chandigargh. It was only after the media exposed their misdeed that the department came out with the actual figures. 

This raises serious apprehensions over the accountability and responsibility of the department which should have gone into an overdrive to contain the deadly virus from assuming the shape of an epidemic.

The civic authorities are no less responsible for the spread of the seasonal diseases. Forget fogging and spraying insecticides that go in the name of special sanitation drive, the Municipal Corporations of Chandigarh, Mohali and Panchkula have been found wanting in doing even the routine job of ensuring sanitation and cleanliness. Insanitary conditions, stagnant water and heaps of garbage  becoming the breeding grounds for mosquitoes and flies have failed to make them sit up and act.

But when it comes to making claims, both the Health Department and the civic officials seem to be beating each other in the race to repeat in a parrot-like manner, “all is well”, “the situation is under control” and “enough is being done”. Little do they realize that the ground reality nails all their hollow claims.

In the absence of proper awareness, the affected people are  flocking to private clinics and laboratories, which are making hay while the mosquito bites. With no control or check, those ailing are paying through the nose, both for diagnostics and treatment at private clinics. The hapless inhabitants, so it seems, have been left to fend for themselves.

Even as more people are succumbing to the bites of dreaded dengue and dangerous chikungunia and the number of those affected is rising by the day, the higher authorities in the tricity as well as the elected public representatives do not seem to be concerned. If this is ‘all is well’ for them, one wonders how many more cases and casualties will they take to be shaken out of their slumber?