A CMC worker sprays larvaecide oil in Cuttack. Picture by Badrika Nath Das

Cuttack/Bhubaneswar, June 6: The Cuttack and Bhubaneswar municipal corporations are gearing up to tackle dengue, malaria and other vector-borne diseases prior to the onset of monsoons.

Cuttack alone had reported 1,100 dengue positive cases last year and the state capital 36 cases. The civic authorities of the two prominent cities have, therefore, decided not to take any chance and undertake special awareness and preventive measures.

Cuttack

Cuttack Municipal Corporation (CMC) has decided to constitute ‘zone-wise squads’ in association with the health department to implement and monitor various awareness programmes on dengue prevention.

A massive sanitation and awareness drive will also be undertaken at several localities from where maximum dengue cases were reported within corporation limits in 2013. The sanitation drive is likely to begin in the third week of June.

Official sources said out of the total 1,456 dengue positive cases reported from the district, over 1,100 cases were reported from the city alone last year.

“We have decided to constitute zone-wise squads for better implementation of various awareness and preventive measures to combat dengue,” said collector Girish SN.

Girish said that various health workers, school students, Puja committee members would be roped in to carry out necessary awareness and sanitation measures in various localities.

Bhubaneswar

The state capital reported 90 suspected dengue cases last year out of which 36 were positive. “Dengue prevention lies mainly with awareness on the disease and not to allow stagnant water around the habitation. We have deployed 170 staff currently with the sanitation team for the awareness drive and another 170 will be included to make it more effective,’’ said city health officer Chandrika Prasad Das.

Two types of anti-larval treatment have already started and in critical pockets fogging to kill the adult mosquitoes will also be carried out, said Das.