An increasing number of dengue cases being reported in Vizag

The city of Vizag is being haunted by the spread of dengue disease. People of both urban and rural places in the city are reportedly carrying symptoms of the disease.

From January till date, the report submitted by the district health officials illustrated that a total number of 1,500 cases were registered in Vizag. In June and July alone, the King George Hospital (KGH) in Vizag has received 25 to 30 patients on an average in a day. 19 dengue positive cases, majorly from rural and semi-urban areas have been registered on Thursday. While June and July witnessed 800 cases, 600 dengue affected cases were reported alone in this month.

Epidemiologist for Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP), Kalyan Prasad said, “Due to the shortage of staff, we are unable to manage every village. There are many residents who store unused materials outside, despite our awareness campaigns. However, we have asked the Saadhikara Mitras, Asha workers, and youth to form teams to educate villagers.”

Additional to mosquito menace, the rains made the city a mosquito breeding ground, with the water stagnation remaining an issue. The most basic requirement to stem the spread is to keep the surroundings clean.

Safety measures

First and foremost maintain proper levels of hygiene inside and outside the house. Make sure that any waste or garbage is well covered and disposed of regularly. Ensure that there are no puddles or pools of water in or around the house. To prevent the stagnation of water and simultaneously restore the water table, Rain-Water-Harvesting is a proactive and practical approach. If properly executed, rainwater harvesting relieves water stagnation, diverts the water getting wasted, raises the groundwater level and prevents seawater from contaminating the drinking groundwater supply. It is crucial to ensure that the harvested rainwater is not allowed to remain in open tanks, barrels or tubs, but is instantly diverted to a closed tank or directly into the earth. Mosquitoes cannot breed in flowing water, but, still waters are the perfect breeding tanks.