The Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) authorities have begun a 10-day special drive to destroy the breeding grounds of Aedes mosquito larvae and create awareness against dengue and chikungunya.
The “combing operation” will continue till August 7, except for Fridays, in 54 wards under 10 regions of the DNCC.
Mayor Atiqul Islam inaugurated the drive in Mohammadpur area when popular actor Mosharraf Karim, DNCC Chief Executive Officer Selim Reza and Chief Health Officer Brigadier General Jobaidur Rahman, local ward councillors, among others, were present on the occasion.
The mayor said free dengue tests have been arranged for the city dwellers in 44 city health centres of the DNCC.
Atiqul added that everyone should behave as responsible citizens to prevent the spread of Aedes mosquitoes by keeping their homes and surroundings neat and clean.
The program is launched at a time when the country is seeing a surge in dengue cases in Dhaka due to monsoon amid Covid-19 pandemic. Bangladesh recorded 153 new cases of dengue in the last 24 hours, 150 of which were detected in Dhaka alone.
This is the highest single-day caseload reported in Dhaka so far this year, according to the latest dengue update by the Health Emergency Operation Centre and Control Room of the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) released on Wednesday.
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According to the health authorities, till now, 1,726 dengue cases have been recorded in July. Of them, 99% were diagnosed in Dhaka alone.
During the program, the mayor advised all to keep their residences and neighbourhoods clean by removing clean water which remained stagnant for three days in different pots, particularly flower tubs, roof or construction materials.
Out of over 700 volunteers, the one providing the most informative picture about the origin of the Aedes mosquitoes will be rewarded, he announced.
He said mobile application “Sabar Dhaka” is available to solve civic problems alongside the DNCC emergency hotline numbers 09602222333 and 09602222334.
On Tuesday, DNCC mobile courts realized fines of Tk4.41 lakh in 15 cases during anti-dengue drives on Tuesday.
During the drive, various awareness campaigns were carried out and people were encouraged to follow health guidelines and remain vigilant to destroy the larvae of Aedes mosquitoes.
The country's health authorities reported 143 new dengue cases in the last 24 hours till Tuesday morning.
DSCC steps
On the other hand, the executive magistrates of Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) found Aedes mosquito larvae in 23 buildings of Dhaka on Tuesday.
Also Read - DSCC, DNCC raid buildings for Aedes larvae
After visiting 394 houses and under-construction buildings, 11 mobile court teams of the DSCC imposed fines over Tk3 lakh in 23 cases after finding a favorable environment for Aedes mosquito breeding in them.
The drives were conducted in Shiddheswari, Azimpur, Maniknagar, Imambag, Jorbhita, Matuail, Elephant Road, Imamganj and Kadamtali areas of the capital.
On Wednesday, DSCC Mayor Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh called upon city dwellers to provide information about the breeding grounds of Aedes larvae.
“If you [city dwellers] cannot remove water from your roofs, let us know. We will go there and remove stagnated water,” said Taposh, after visiting waterlogged areas under the city corporation.
The mayor also said that the city corporation has pesticides, manpower and machinery for the work.
“Just cooperate with us by providing information about the breeding grounds of Aedes mosquitoes. It is not possible to go from house to house as the city has a vast area. So give us information,” he added.
