KOCHI: Residents of Kochi corporation will have to endure those blood-sucking mosquitoes for now.
Even eight months after taking office, the UDF-led Kochi corporation has failed to invite an expression of interest for the survey announced as a prerequisite for its scientific mosquito eradication programme.
Now, with the model code of conduct coming into force following the announcement of by-elections to various local bodies, the process has been temporarily halted, delaying implementation further.
Though the corporation claims that fogging and manual cleaning of mosquito breeding sites have been conducted in divisions to prevent communicable diseases, the city reported mosquito-borne diseases like malaria, dengue, chikungunya in large numbers during the monsoon. Usually, the diseases are reported the most in the October-November period.
Health standing committee chairperson Seena Gokulan said the last council meeting decided to entrust the task of surveying mosquito breeding grounds in the city to an external agency. “The decision is yet to arrive as an order. Since the model code of conduct is in effect, the process to invite interested companies to take up the survey will be delayed,” she said.
In its budget passed earlier this year, the corporation had earmarked Rs 10 crore for the scientific mosquito eradication programme. The plan was to conduct an elaborate survey with GIS mapping to locate major mosquito breeding regions in the city – mainly the canals where cleaning work is very sporadic. “GPS mapping will help identify regions with high mosquito density. Necessary source reduction activities can be taken up in such areas,” Seena said.
Meanwhile, the opposition has criticised the corporation’s lackadaisical approach towards mosquito eradication. “Where is the special squad, the 232-member force launched by the corporation for mosquito eradication? Despite repeated demands from councillors, both ruling and opposition, fogging in divisions did not happen timely as task force members were assigned other jobs. In the last monsoon, many divisions witnessed a spike in dengue cases. It could have been prevented through effective intervention,” alleged V A Sreejith, the leader of opposition.