Karnataka has recorded 580 confirmed cases of dengue in just two weeks. Sudden bursts of rains across the state and poor water supply is said to have resulted in the sudden spurt.
The Health Department recorded figures of 805 confirmed cases on June 3. By June 14, the cases shot up to 1,385. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s home district of Mysore tops the list with 204 cases and two deaths, followed by Bangalore with 163 cases and Davangere with 113.
Professor and Head of Department of Paediatrics at JSS Hospital, Mysore, Dr D Narayanappa told Express: “If it rains heavily and continuously, there will no stagnation of water, so there will be no spread of dengue. But we have been getting rain in drizzles, particularly in Mysore, Bangalore, Davangere and Haveri, so the spread of dengue is more there.’’
“The only way to prevent the spread is to clean up objects in which water stagnates,’’ he added.
The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike, which took up a full-fledged mosquito control drive from June 1, has covered 1,60,705 houses in the entire city. They found alarming numbers of dengue-causing aedes larvae mosquitoes in water storage tanks: one in every 80 houses searched.
Health and Family Welfare director Dr Dhanya Kumar told Express: “The number of dengue cases will come down as rains increase. So far, four dengue deaths have been recorded in the state — two in Mysore, one each in Davangere and Belgaum.”
BBMP Medical Health Officer Dr Sangamitra said nursing students along with junior and senior health inspectors and gangmen carried out larvae destruction programmes.