New Delhi, Sep 23 (PTI) The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) has carried out 27 special drives in high-risk areas across the city, including police stations, parks, schools, hospitals, and government offices, to combat vector borne diseases, an official said on Monday.
The civic body has increased its efforts to control the spread of dengue, malaria, and chikungunya through a variety of actions, such as house-to-house inspections, regular insecticide spraying, and public awareness campaigns, Additional Commissioner Pankaj Agrawal told PTI.
“Special fogging operations were conducted during large gatherings like the Kavad camps and at temples during Krishna Janmashtami. The fogging was also conducted at Red Fort under the 2024 Intensive Dengue Control (IDC) programme,” he informed.
Agrawal led a special surveillance drive at Maulana Azad Medical College on Monday during which solid waste, including plastic containers and potential breeding sites were identified. Out of 1,750 containers checked, breeding was found in three containers, which were destroyed on-site, the civic body claimed in a statement.
“We have conducted more than 2.78 crore house visits till date to find and remove mosquito breeding sites, with over 1.96 lakh homes found to have breeding grounds, all of which were treated immediately. Drains, water bodies, and other high-risk areas are regularly sprayed with larvicides to prevent mosquitoes from growing,” Agrawal said.
“We have also carried out 27 special drives to cover vulnerable areas like police stations, construction sites, parks and nursenet and institutions, hospitals, schools, and government offices,” he added.
Additionally, the MCD has used fishes that eat mosquito larvae in 217 clean water locations and deployed special spray tankers on railway wagons to treat low-lying areas near railway tracks where water often collects, according to official data.
To spread awareness, the MCD has distributed over 9.2 lakh stickers and put up banners across the city. It has also used radio, social media, bulk SMS campaigns, and LED boards at metro stations and busy markets to inform the public.
To improve coordination, the MCD has held 28 meetings with key agencies like the Delhi Police, Delhi Jal Board (DJB), Public Works Department (PWD), and the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), ensuring optimal utilisation of resources to stop mosquito breeding, the official said.
To enforce mosquito control laws, the MCD has issued over 1.14 lakh legal notices and 39,338 challans to those who allowed mosquito breeding on their properties. Repeat offenders have been fined Rs 24.82 lakh, and police complaints have been filed against 9,241 people who didn’t follow the rules, as per the data. Looking ahead, the MCD plans to increase fogging operations at major public events like Dussehra and Durga Puja, and step up inspections and anti-larval measures in areas with high mosquito populations. PTI SJJ NB
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