Tamil Nadu: 2,845 ground workers fight mosquito menace
The workers are equipped with 586 fogging sprays, 245 pump sprays, 39 fogging lorries and 3 power sprays.
Chennai: In an attempt to curb the mosquito menace that is leading to a surge in the number of dengue and malaria cases in the city, the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) announced various measures taken to control it.
The health department has deployed 2,845 ground workers to carry out fogging and check breeding in all GCC zones. The workers are equipped with 586 fogging sprays, 245 pump sprays, 39 fogging lorries and 3 power sprays.
“Apart from regular awareness campaigns to control and prevent the breeding of mosquitoes, every zone is under the supervision of a domestic breeding checker per 500 households. High accuracy hand held device for vector control monitoring system is also being used to map the mosquito menace and take action against it,” said health education department official T Srinivasan.
The GCC began identification of areas with high-intensity mosquito menace, especially in riverside locations that includes Adyar Cooum, Otteri Naala, Buckingham Canal and Captain Cotton Canal using the device.
The vector control monitoring system uses the device for live tracking of mosquito breeding grounds.
Officials say that field assistants use an app to enter the real time data of the density of vectors to carry out control action as per the system. “Hospitals and PHCs update health department officials on the number of vector-borne diseases to help with the surveillance of the diseases. Introduction of the gambusia fish to destroy mosquito larva will be carried out after the rainy season,” the official said.