Over 1,700 Dengue Cases In Delhi

Dengue cases have risen in the national capital, taking the total number of people affected by the vector-borne disease this year in the city to over 1,700, according to a municipal report released on Monday.

The number of malaria cases recorded till November 30 has also risen to 685, it said. Till November 18, the city had recorded 1,474 cases of dengue.

With fresh cases, the total currently stands at 1,786, the civic authorities said, adding November alone saw 717 cases. Of the total dengue cases, October saw 787, the highest in any month so far this year while in the same month 249 malaria cases were also recorded, according to the report.

Besides, 551 dengue cases were recorded in October, 190 in September, 52 in August, 18 in July, 11 in June and the rest were registered between January and May, according to the South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC), which tabulates data on vector-borne diseases in the city. Fifty-six malaria cases were recorded in August, 54 in July, 35 in June, eight in May and one in April, it said. According to the report, at least 252 cases of chikungunya have also been reported this year.

Last year, 2,798 dengue cases and four deaths were recorded by the SDMC. It had also reported 473 cases of malaria and 165 cases of chikungunya. Both the Delhi government and the local bodies have been making efforts to raise awareness on precautions to ensure that there is no breeding of mosquito larvae. The AAP government had recently conducted an anti-dengue campaign ''10Hafte, 10Baje, 10Minute'' urging people to inspect their house for any standing water.

The campaign -- from September 1 and November 15 -- to combat dengue had garnered support from several personalities, including cricket legend Kapil Dev, many Bollywood actors and well-known journalists. Dengue mosquito larvae breed in clear, standing water, while those of malaria thrive even in dirty water. Doctors have advised people to take precautions and ensure that there is no breeding of mosquito larvae around them. They have urged people to wear full-sleeves and use mosquito nets. Water coolers should be dried up when not in use as mosquitoes carrying dengue virus usually breed there, a doctor said.

Cases of vector-borne diseases are usually reported between July and November, but the period may stretch till mid-December. Meanwhile, mosquito-breeding has been reported in at least 1,77,253 households and 1,40,670 legal notices have been issued this year. From public schools to government office premises, several institutions have been penalised by civic authorities in north Delhi in the last five months over breeding of mosquito larvae on their premises, officials had earlier said.