Dry day to resume in Bhubaneswar ahead of monsoon to fight dengue

BHUBANESWAR: With the southwest monsoon expected to arrive on time, the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) has decided to resume its ‘dry day’ drive in the capital city as an advance measure to counter dengue menace that had assumed an alarming proportion in the previous season.

Sources said a decision to this effect was taken during the meeting presided over by BMC commissioner Rajesh Prabhakar Patil recently. As per the decision, dry day will be observed in the city every Friday from June second week. This apart, dengue awareness drive will be intensified and zonal deputy commissioners of South-East, North and West zones will submit action taken report on drainage desiltation, garbage lifting and source segregation on a regular basis from June 8 onwards.

Sources said IRC village, Nayapalli, Unit IX, Old Town as well as parts of Saheed Nagar, Acharya Vihar, Niladri Vihar, Satya Nagar, Jayadev Vihar, Unit IV, Laxmi Sagar and Unit III will be on focus in view of detection hundreds of cases in these areas in the previous season. Asha, Anganwadi workers as well as volunteers, resident welfare associations and other youth organisations will be mobilsed for community awareness during the monsoon season, while ‘Nidhi Rath’ of urban health mission will roll in the three zones to sensitise residents.

Moreover, potholes on roads will be filled, while the source reduction drive to destroy mosquito breeding grounds will also be intensified by BMC’s sanitation wing from the scheduled timeline to check large-scale outbreak of the vector-born disease. Dengue had assumed alarming proportion in the capital city last year with over 4,000 cases detected in Bhubaneswar region in the last monsoon and post monsoon season. Dengue had also reportedly claimed two lives, though it could not be confirmed. The civic body had even used drones to spray mosquito oil in inaccessible pockets to eliminate breeding sources.