Tata Steel BSL launches drive against dengue and malaria in Dhenkanal

With Odisha's industrial belt of Angul and Dhenkanal witnessing cases of malaria and dengue, Tata Steel BSL has launched a three-month long drive against the vector-borne disease prevention in 25 villages around its plant at Narendrapur in Dhenkanal district, an official said.

A statement by the company said that the drive will benefit around 33,000 villagers from these villages of Dhenkanal and Angul districts. The programme was formally launched by Chakradhar Parida, Sarapancha, Nuagaon in the presence of Tata Steel BSL officials and villagers at Raghunathpur village.

The activities include fogging, anti-larval spray and building awareness on symptoms, causes and treatment of vector borne diseases like dengue and malaria among the villagers.

The peripheral villages around the plant are dengue and malaria prone areas and with the onset of the rainy season the risk of the disease goes up, it said.

As part of its health-care initiatives, last month a 100-bed COVID hospital with 10-bed ICU facility developed by the steel major at Kharagprasad in Dhenkanal was dedicated for the community.

Tata Steel BSL Limited, formerly known as Bhushan Steel Limited (BSL), is India's fifth largest flat steel producing company with an existing steel production capacity of 5.2 million tonnes per annum (MTPA).