Dengue cases mount to 1,310; 64 pc of them recorded in Oct

Nearly 300 fresh cases of dengue have been reported over the last one week in Delhi, taking the total number of people diagnosed with the vector-borne disease this season to 1,310, a municipal report released Monday said.

At least 829 cases were reported in the month of October only.

Also, 427 cases of malaria and 129 of chikungunya have been reported this season till October 27, the report said.

It says nearly 830 new dengue cases came to light in the first four weeks of October, which accounts for over 64 per cent of the total cases reported this season.

Of the 1,310 dengue cases this year, 374 were recorded in September, 58 in August, 19 in July, eight in June, 10 in May, two in April, one in March, three in February and six in January.

Two malaria cases were reported in February, one each in April and March, 17 in May, 25 in June, 42 in July, 82 in August, 138 in September and 119 till October 27, according to the South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) which tabulates data on vector-borne diseases in the city.

A senior doctor at a government-run facility advised people to take precautions like wearing full-sleeves and not allowing the breeding of mosquito larvae inside their homes.

"Water coolers should be dried up when not in use as dengue infection carrying mosquitoes breed there a lot. Mosquito nets should be used at home," the doctor said.

The cases of vector-borne diseases are usually reported between July and November, but the period may stretch to mid-December. No vector-borne disease case was reported till January 13.

The report said domestic breeding checkers found mosquito breeding in 2,15,995 households in the city till October 27. It said 1,73,462 legal notices have been served for various violations and "24,696 prosecutions initiated".

As a pro-active measure, Delhi Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal had a few months ago directed local bodies and other agencies to intensify vector-control measures.

He had also asked for regular meetings at the level of district magistrates with all stakeholders to review the situation in their respective districts.

According to the SDMC, 10 people died due to dengue in Delhi last year, of whom five were not residents of the national capital.

Overall, the vector-borne disease had affected 9,271 people in the city last year.