GUNTUR: Fresh dengue fever cases continue to trickle in from Guntur city spurring demands for measures to check spread of the vector-borne disease. With three tested postive for dengue on Thursday, 10 persons are affected with the disease in September.
Residents are complaining that the Guntur Municipal Corporation (GMC) is only organising campaigns and has failed to take up steps to prevent mosquito menace. Demanding the civic body to prevent spread of viral fevers during the rainy season, Nuttaki Siva Ramakrishna and B Murali, residents of Brodipeta, said the GMC must take help from private bodies for its campaigns, which needed to be boosted further, and anti-larval measures must be intensified.
Municipal Health Officer (MHO) Ch Sobha Rani said the persons tested positive for dengue on Thursday--J Sai Kumar of Rajagopala Nagar, M Rama Devi of Sriram Nagar and J Harika of Brodipet--were responding well to treatment, adding that seven other cases were reported earlier this month. As soon as the cases were reported, the GMC initiated special drives at houses in these three areas to restrain mosquito menace, she said. Along with this, 26 special teams are working at every identified areas with prevalent mosquito problem, she added. “In addition, the GMC has identified 25 slums in the city where anti-larval measure will be initiated,” Sobha Rani said.
Keeping the above situation in view, GMC Commissioner Srikesh B Lathkar has directed officials of the public health and sanitary departments to take-up anti-larval activities across the city that might help in curbing the problem.
Assuring that every possible measure is being taken by the civic body, biologist D Obulu said the special teams are inspecting every house and creating awareness among the denizens about steps that prevents mosquito breeding.