Delhi CM chairs meeting to check spread of dengue, other vector-borne diseases

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Friday chaired a meeting to discuss ways to check spread of dengue and other vector-borne diseases in the national capital, officials said.

The meeting was attended by Delhi Health Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj and Mayor Shelly Oberoi, they said.

A total of 187 dengue cases have been reported in the national capital this year till July 22 -- the highest for the period since 2018, according to a civic body report released on Monday.

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"The meeting began at noon and went on for around an hour. Besides the city health minister and senior officials of the health department, the mayor of Delhi was also present in the meeting in which ways to check the spread of dengue and other vector-borne diseases were discussed," a senior official told PTI.

The number of dengue cases reported in the first three weeks of July stood at nearly 65. It was 40 in June and 23 in May, according to the report issued by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD).

In addition, 61 cases of malaria have been recorded in the same period, it said.

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In 2022, Delhi reported 159 dengue cases between January 1 and July 22. During the same period in 2021, it reported 47 dengue cases.

In 2018, 2019, and 2020, the city witnessed 49, 34, and 28 cases, respectively.

Oberoi had recently cautioned people against the possibility of a rise in dengue and malaria cases in the national capital due to flooding in several areas.

She said that departments have been directed to check mosquito breeding and clear the silt and sludge left by the flood.