Reza Mahmud :
Increasing mosquito menace has unleashed anxiety about dengue and chikunguniya diseases in Dhaka, the experts concerned.
They said that without taking especial measures
right now, it may take a serious turn like the corona situation in the world perspective.
Sources said, the people of the country are living with enormous pain with the anxiety of coronavirus and the suffering from mosquito menace in the very same time.
“If the authorities concerned want to curb dengue and chikunguniya threat, they should start huge actions to make the city free from mosquitoes just now without delaying any more,” Professor Dr. M.Muzaherul Huq, the former Regional Advisor of World Health Organisation (WHO) told The New Nation. He said, without taking sharp action the dengue may turn a horrific situation.
The Professor said, usually, the dengue and chikunguniya begin in June/July from aedes mosquito. The rainy days may start soon, which may increase the mosquito breeding and to push the threat out of control.
City dwellers in every corner of the city from the Jurain to Uttara areas are complaining of pain of mosquitoes in everywhere. “There are huge mosquitoes in our area in Gandaria and Jurain. We are in suffering seriously from the mosquito bites. Especially the children are in vulnerable condition,” said Husain Ahmed, Proprietor of Medicine Point of Gandaria. Kamrul Islam, a private sector service holder, also shared his suffering from mosquitoes with this daily.
He said that residencs in the city’s New Market area are full of mosquitoes. The worst song in the earth is the song of mosquitoes. But we become compelled to listen to such song regularly. “None wants to listen to such annoying song regularly, but we have no choice, because the authority failed to kill the mosquitoes which give them (mosquitoes) certificate to continue their aggression among the people,” Kamrul said.
Md. Alam from Merul Badda area said, they are hanging mosquito nets all time even in day light.
“We are even do our office work by laptop under mosquito nets. It is really painful,” he said.
Nurul Huq from Mugda area and Shamrat Hossain from Mirpur area also shared similar stories of their areas.
Nurul Huq said, the city corporations are announcing huge budget to kill mosquitoes but the result is zero.
Experts are in anxiety over such condition of mosquito breeding. They said if the condition continues, the dengue outbreak may not be like the previous year.
Renowned Medical Entomologist, Professor of Zoology of Jahangirnagor University, Dr. Kabirul Bashar said, “There were no dengue patients in January and February in 2019, but many dengue patients were admitted in hospitals in first months of this year. So, there is a fear of possible dengue outbreak in June-July this year.”
He said the city corporations should take especial measures to combat with aedes mosquito right now.
But, Dr Ayesha Akhter, In-Charge of the Disease Control Room the Directorate General of Health Service (DGHS) differs with the experts.
She said, “The dengue patients found in January and February this year is true, but it is not suddenly. The matter was a lot in previous year. It never means that dengue fever may take a disaster this year. The government continues taking its measures to eliminate the fear.”
Dhaka North City Corporation’s budget to eliminate mosquitoes is Tk 49.3 crore while Dhaka South City Corporation has allotted Tk 43.30 in their budget of 2019-2020 fiscal year.
DSCC Chief Health Officer Brigadier General Dr. Md. Sharif Ahmed, told The New Nation, “We are trying our best to save Dhaka dwellers from Dengue and Chikunguniya. The DSCC’s measures to control mosquito menace will be continuing.”
He also suggested that the people should have a role to play to make the city free from mosquito born diseases keeping their surrounding safe from water loggings.
DNCC Chief Health Officer Brigadier General Md. Mominur Rahman Mamun, told The New Nation, “DNCC have given importance on two things to eliminate dengue and chikunguniya from the city. One is continuing and increasing efforts with city corporation’s tools to curb mosquitoe menace. The other is to make people awareness through various programmes.”
He said, people of the capital are important partner of the city authorities to make the city livable. So, they should play vital role to make a clean city to fight mosquito and other hazardous.
Dengue fever claims 164 lives in Bangladesh in 2019, according to the DGHS, after reviewing 263 deaths.
The reported dengue cases reached 101,354 last year.
