280 dengue cases recorded in Delhi in past week; authorities find mosquito breeding in over 2 lakh households

New Delhi: Nearly 280 fresh cases of dengue have been reported over the last one week in the national capital, taking the total number of people diagnosed with the vector-borne disease this season to 1,875, a municipal report released on Monday said. According to the report, there has been one death due to dengue this year till 10 November. At least 1,114 cases were reported in October alone. Also, 450 cases of malaria and 141 of chikungunya have been reported this season till 10 November, the report said. [caption id=“attachment_2980102” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of fogging to free an area of mosquitoes. Reuters[/caption] Of the 1,875 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 130 in October, according to the South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) which tabulates data on vector-borne diseases in the city. Doctors have advised people to take precautions to ensure there is no breeding of mosquitoes inside the homes and also urged people to wearing full-sleeves and use mosquito nets at home while sleeping. Water coolers should be dried up when not in use as dengue infection carrying mosquitoes breed there a lot, a 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, 25,593 households in the city till 10 November and 1,80,321 legal notices have been served for various violations and “25,570 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.