Mosquito menace continues to sting

BHUBANESWAR: In spite of the City Health Office (CHO) under Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation’s (BMC) round-the-clock efforts to combat mosquito menace, there has been no significant decrease in the mosquito density. Recently, there was a fear of dengue outbreak here, but no positive cases have been found yet. The mosquito density in the city is on the rise. The latest mosquito density is 48 per cent high. It was 40 per cent in September. According to City Health Officer (CHO) Chandrika Prasad Das, February and March being the breeding months for mosquitoes, the density remains high. The CHO’s major responsibility is to curb the development of larvae into adult mosquitoes. Around 200 staff under the CHO regularly spray mosquito repellents in 60 wards of the city every week. They also undertake fogging of the entire city once a year. BMC officials say fogging is an expensive affair as one litre of insecticide costs Rs 2,000. “But we shall undertake fogging operations if need arises, like detection of a dengue case,” said Das.  They also clean the drains and water- logged areas. A few places in every ward have been identified where these measures are taken up. The CHO has completed two rounds of fogging in the last six months due to fear of dengue outbreak.  Residents complain that there are no visible signs of the corporation doing anything to curb the mosquito menace. “Now nothing works against mosquitoes as they have developed resistance to mosquito repellents,” said Sneha, a college student. “It has become difficult to get proper sleep,” she added. BMC has received around 160 complaints on mosquito menace. At present, they have no additional provisions to deal with the growing mosquito menace in the city, said the CHO.