Mosquito repellents on display at IB Market. Pictures by Sayantan Ghosh

Shopkeepers of Salt Lake admit that the peak season for selling mosquito repellents is generally winter but this year sales are on the upswing in monsoon itself. “With so many cases of dengue around, customers are taking every precaution they can,” says a salesman at IA Market’s ration shop.

At his shop, the sale of mosquito-repelling coils and oils are flying off shelves. “People are especially picking up low-smoke coils,” he says. These coils are available in small and large packs but the latter, costing Rs 27 for 14 coils, is outselling the former.

So high is the demand for coils in some Sector III shops that stocks are running out. “Customers are returning empty-handed sometimes. Liquid vaporisers, like All Out and Good knight, and creams like Odomos are also doing brisk business,” said Animesh Dolui of GD Market. According to Tapas Naskar of another GD Market store, the popularity of creams is a recent phenomenon. “They wouldn’t sell earlier but this year has seen a 20 per cent rise in sales. Parents are realising that children could get stung even outside home. They are sending their kids to school only after applying the ointment on them,” he says.

A fast food seller outside IB Market burns egg cartons as its smoke repels mosquitoes

In markets like CA and CK, mosquito-repelling sprays outsell other kinds of repellents. “The general feeling among residents is that mosquitoes have got immune to the oils. They buy sprays as they think the stronger the smell, the more effective the spray,” says Arun Biswas of Satyanarayan Stores in CK Market. “The small and medium sizes of Hit spray, priced at Rs 80 and Rs 150 sell the best. There’s a bigger size too but it’s too expensive so I don’t keep it.”

Supervalue Stores, also of CK Market, says they are running out of sprays and liquid vaporisers. “Customers are buying four to five bottles for every room in the house. After two such customers my stocks run out,” says proprietor Babu Saha.

Residents admit to buying as many repellents as they can. “I am buying a packet of coil every week,” says Pratima Sarkar of HA Block, whose domestic help has refused to work unless her workplace is mosquito-free. Reena Dutta of GD Block is using coils even while cooking. “The coil’s smoke makes us cough but we cannot help it. Living next to the Eastern Drainage Canal, we need strong repellents,” says Nirala Chakraborty of FF Block.

Those who cannot afford to buy repellents are opting for home remedies. The roll seller outside IB Market has been burning the cartons he gets with the purchase of eggs everyday. “The smoke drives off mosquitoes. I burn five to six cartons a day and even share cartons with my neighbouring paan and chop sellers.”

Netlons, the netted covers for windows, are high in demand too. Says Subhasish Ghosh of Swati Distributors in Karunamoyee Housing Complex: “Sales are up 40 per cent this year. Dengue has created such a panic that people are calling up and asking us to install Netlons within 24 hours,” says Ghosh.

One item that has failed to pick up is mosquito nets. Says Debasish Roy of Sri Ram Krishna Ashish store in CK Market: “Those who use mosquito nets use them round the year and those who do not are unlikely to use them even if mosquitoes increase. It’s a matter of habit. We have light, compact and colourful nets priced between Rs 180 and 650 but sales are as it was a month ago.” It’s the same story in Sector III markets.

But Roy says his cheapest nylon nets are being bought by East-West Metro labourers who sleep under them on the road at night.

Unable to bear with the pests, many are turning to pest control agencies. Says Rajiv Chakraborty of Pest Control of India in BE Block: “We are getting many mosquito-related calls this season but unfortunately, mosquitoes are very difficult to eradicate from a house. This is because the pests will fly out when we spray chemicals but fly in an hour later.”

He says it is more effective to do pest-control in an entire block than in a single house, as that would include all problem areas like water bodies and greenery in the area.

CEO of Orion Pest Control, Anindya Dey, says they are using a combination of larvaecide (to kill larvae in water) and adulticide (a term used to describe the killing of adult mosquitoes). “We are getting more calls from malls and multiplexes,” he says.

The price of pest control treatments depends on the floor area, the presence of water bodies nearby and how often the customer wants the treatment done.