All’s well, assures Cuttack Municipal Corporation as city reels under mosquito menace
CUTTACK: The winter in Cuttack brings along with the relentless bites of mosquitoes and rise in cases of dengue. So, when the Cuttack Municipal Corporation (CMC) assures citizens that the mosquito population in the city is under control, it is bound to raise suspicion.
While the civic body is no stranger to statements which sound unbelievable, the fact is that the mosquito density in the city is being calculated by a sole insect collector.
As per reports, CMC has eight sanctioned posts of insect collector to deal with its 59 wards. However, of the eight, as many as seven posts have been lying vacant.
The insect collectors’ job profile includes visiting different wards and collect mosquitoes from 10 fixed houses and as many houses on random basis. The mosquitoes are observed in a test tube using an aspirator for 15 minutes and their density calculated by the average number of bites on 10 persons per hour. While a density of 30 is normal and 40 moderate, density level beyond 40 is considered high.
“Earlier, while even all the eight insect collectors were facing an uphill task in calculating mosquito density, how is it be possible on the part of one insect collector to visit all 59 wards to carry out the survey,” questioned a city-based entomologist. The CMC’s mosquito density calculation is doubtful and flawed. The mosquito density seems to be beyond 70 in the city, he added.
City health officer Satyabrata Mohapatra however said the civic body has already apprised the director of Public Health of the vacancies while seeking posting of least five insect collectors.
“In view of the mosquito breeding season which is generally between November to February, we have intensified spraying of mosquito larvicidal (ML) oil in drains, Temephos on residential premises and ward wise fogging of Pyrethrum,” said Mohapatra. While fogging is being conducted with two hand-operated machine thrice a week in each ward, a vehicle mounted machine has also been engaged for fogging in different localities of the city, he informed.