Health Department gears up to tackle mosquito-borne diseases

Amritsar, June 29

Ahead of the monsoon season, the Health Department has intensified efforts to create awareness about mosquito-borne diseases such as dengue and chikungunya. The department has so far reported only one case of chikungunya while no case of dengue has been detected in the city.

However, with the monsoon season just at hand, the health authorities fear that breeding of mosquitoes would increase and so would the number of dengue and chikungunya cases. Civil Surgeon Dr Sumit Singh said, “Mosquito-borne diseases are easily preventable provided residents are aware about their causes and symptoms.”

He said preventing mosquito bites by preventing their breeding was the foremost precaution people can take. “People should not let water accumulate in anything that can hold it. Old utensils, worn out tyres, flower pots and air coolers could easily convert into breeding grounds if care is not taken,” he said.

The Civil Surgeon said residents must change water in air coolers once every week along with conducting an inspection of their surroundings to check potential breeding grounds.

“With the onset of monsoon, water would accumulate at various places including parks, localities, roadsides and vacant plots. Along with the administration, residents should ensure that there is no mosquito breeding at these places,” he said.