Dengue loses sting by Oct, but waterlogging keeps vector lethal

Hyderabad: While most dengue cases are generally reported between August and October months, this year, cases started coming as early as the month of June and the vector borne disease is expected to be active till December this year.
Doctors and health experts said widespread water-logging in the city is to be blamed for the steep increase in dengue cases.
This despite the rainfall having been much less in the month of September as compared to the last year.
While last year from September 1 to September 17, 219.3 mm of rainfall was recorded in the city, this year 117.6 mm of rainfall has been recorded.Water stagnation and damp surroundings are conducive for breeding of the Aedes mosquito (that spreads dengue and chikangunia) .
What makes matters worse is that the Aedes mosquito that spreads dengue, does not require particularly dirty water to breed.
“Even if there is stagnant water in a rubber tyre or in a coconut shell it is enough for the Aedes mosquito to breed.Also the fact that the mosquito bites during daytime, makes it difficult to control the spread of dengue.
Unlike night, when people use mosquito nets, repellents etc, the day biting mosquitos have a free run,“ said Dr Hari Kishan, consultant general physician, Apollo Hospitals Hyderguda, adding that the highly congested city leads to large-scale water stagnation.
Residents in various areas complained of stagnation to be an issue for months toget her due to the lack of a proper drainage system.
“Even if it rains for a day , we have water stagnation in our areas for the next one to two weeks due to potholes and uneven roads,“ said P Krishnaiah, a resident of Madhavapuri Hills road.
Meanwhile, as per the latest figures available, the total number of dengue cases recorded `officially' have now reached 1143 in the state (up to September 15). Telangana state has recorded the fifth highest number of Swine flu (H1N1) cases among all states and a marked increase in number of cases has been reported over the last one month.