NEW DELHI: A total of 178 dengue cases have been recorded in the national capital so far this year, according to a civic body report released on Monday. In August, a total of nine cases were reported by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi. According to the report, the city recorded 23 dengue cases in January, 16 on February, 22 in March, 20 in April, 30 in May, 32 in June and 26 in July.
Till August 13, the capital had logged 178 dengue cases, the report said. On August 6, the number of cases stood at 174. Four fresh cases were reported in a week, it said. No death has been reported so far this year due to the disease, it added.
The highest number of cases was recorded in West Delhi and the Najafgarh area with 11 and 10 cases respectively. In 2017, Delhi reported 325 cases from January 1-August 13, according to to report. Last year, the national capital recorded 68 dengue cases during the same time period.
Delhi recorded 39 cases of malaria and 13 cases of chikungunya this year, the report said. Cases of vector-borne diseases are usually reported between the month of July and November, which at times stretch till
mid-December.
Civic officials said this year that dengue cases are coming in early due to weather conditions that are congenial for mosquito breeding. Last year, 9,613 dengue cases were recorded in the national capital, the highest since 2015, along with 23 deaths the maximum since 2016.
Ten deaths each were reported due to dengue in 2016 and 2017, four in 2018 and two in 2019. According to official data, 4,431 dengue cases were recorded in Delhi in 2016, 4,726 in 2017, 2,798 in 2018, 2,036 in 2019, and 1,072 in 2020. In 2015, the city witnessed a massive outbreak of dengue with the number of cases crossing 10,600 in October. It was Delhi’s worst dengue outbreak since 1996.
Monsoon causes sudden onset of infection
Civic officials said this year dengue cases were reported early due to weather conditions that are congenial for mosquito breeding. Last year, 9,613 dengue cases were recorded in the national capital, the highest since 2015.
