Lowest dengue cases in Sep in Delhi in last 6 yrs: Satyendar Jain


PTI | New Delhi | Updated: 22-09-2021 22:38 IST | Created: 22-09-2021 22:36 IST
Lowest dengue cases in Sep in Delhi in last 6 yrs: Satyendar Jain
File Photo Image Credit: Twitter(@SatyendarJain)
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Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain on Wednesday claimed that the city this year has recorded the lowest count of dengue cases in September as compared to the corresponding numbers in the past six years.

Over 50 fresh cases of dengue have been reported in the national capital in the last one week, taking the total count this year to more than 210, according to a civic report released on Monday.

In this month alone, 87 cases have been recorded till September 18, which is about 41 per cent of the cumulative cases.

However, no deaths have been reported due to dengue in the city till now, it said.

''About 87 cases have been recorded in September this year. Last year, 188 cases were reported in entire month of September, and 190 the year before that. In preceding years, the figure stood at 374 (2018), 1,103 (2017), 1,362 (2016) and 6,775 (2015),'' he told reporters.

Though the figure shared by the civic body for the current month is only for the period ending September 18, the Delhi health department later in a statement quoted Jain as saying that ''September 2021 has recorded the least number of dengue cases'', for the month, as compared to the corresponding figures reported in the last six years.

In 2015, the city had witnessed a massive outbreak of dengue, when the number of dengue cases reported crossed 10,600 in October itself, making it the worst outbreak of the vector-borne disease in the national capital since 1996.

The deadly virus, however, had claimed over 420 lives, nearly 25 years ago, while the casualty count for 2015 stood at 41.

Jain on Wednesday told reporters that the government is all prepared to handle any dengue situation, and instructions have been issued to the heads of various departments of the city government to take part in its anti-dengue campaign on a working day to ensure that no breeding of mosquito larvae is found on their premises, as Sunday is a holiday.

Mosquito breeding has been reported by civic bodies from various parts of the city, including homes and premises of government offices.

The minister also said the number of novel coronavirus cases has also been under control for the last two months, and together the society and government can strive and win over it, by follow all Covid-appropriate behaviours.

The Delhi health minister also said the city government's anti-dengue drive, '10 Hafte, 10 Baje, 10 Minute' is running for the last three weeks to raise awareness on its prevention. And, this drive has been ''very successful'' in the last two years since its start, which has led to less number of cases this year, Jain said.

The life cycle of a dengue mosquito, from larva to a vector, is about 10 days. People once a week for 10 minutes should check for any stagnation of water in their houses. All that has to be done is to empty lying vessels, flower vases, and containers having stagnant water so that they don't become breeding grounds for these mosquitoes, he added.

Jain also sought to credit the campaign started in September 2019 which was also carried forward last year, as a factor behind ''less cases of dengue being reported this year so far''.

South Delhi Mayor Mukesh Suryan had recently alleged that the Delhi government was playing ''campaign politics'' when it came to the fight against the vector-borne diseases, and termed its anti-dengue drive an ''eyewash''.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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