As the tiny dengue mosquito with its deadly bite stalks homes, striking terror into the hearts of all, the message that has become virulently clear is – each person to his/her own.
The one and only answer to the dengue epidemic that is gripping the country is a massive clean-up campaign, the Sunday Times understands, by the authorities and the people themselves.
Four days in August have been declared National Dengue Prevention Cleaning Days, where everyone will be mobilized to clean up their areas, Health Minister Maithripala Sirisena said.
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| Leaflets were distributed and PHI officers were doing their rounds (below) as part of an awareness campaign in Colombo city yesterday. |
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| Inviting dengue: Our photographer captured this picture of upturned tyres on Bloemendhal Street last morning. |
August 2, 9, 21 and 28 have been set as the days when a huge cleaning campaign has been decreed not only in homes but also in public areas by the Presidential Task Force for Dengue Control, following a proposal made by the Provincial Health Ministers, it is learnt.
Each and every dengue breeding place in homes and public areas needs to be searched out and destroyed, with military precision, and the effort should be sustained not only during the rains when the virus comes out in full force but throughout the year, a source said.
For the miniscule eggs that the dengue mosquitoes leave behind even in a tiny drop of clean water will not get destroyed though the water dries up. They will remain intact and produce larvae as much as a year later when they come into contact with clean water again, another source said.
With dengue figures rising steadily this year to 20,647 with 150 men, women and children dying, Minister Sirisena urged not only the local government bodies, the provincial authorities and the Central Environmental Authority (CEA) to take a leadership role in keeping the environment clean and garbage-free but also the people to look at their surroundings and destroy mosquito breeding places.
The Presidential Task Force has identified 70 Divisional Secretariat areas which show an increase in dengue cases. These areas will be given more attention in dengue control work, Mr. Sirisena said, adding that there has been a decrease in the number of dengue cases in Jaffna because the local authorities are doing their job well.
A discarded tyre, a yoghurt cup thrown into a backyard, a sili-sili bag by a heap of uncollected rubbish by the roadside which could have just a drop of clean water are all open invitations to the dengue mosquito to lay its eggs.
“Lack of attention by people in cleaning dengue breeding sites and the failure of local authorities to carry out their duties are the main contributory factors for the increasing trend in dengue,” stressed Mr. Sirisena.
When asked whether the local authorities have enough resources such as vehicles and sites for collection and disposal of garbage, the Minister said to date he has not received any complaints about the lack of such resources.
Dealing with the public’s responsibility, he pointed out that gutters are a favourite place for the dengue mosquito to lay its eggs and requested people to check them out at least once a week and clear them of water to prevent breeding. Many homes also have indoor plants, but watering them and allowing clean water to collect is a sure way of inviting the dengue mosquito to find a breeding place, he said.
Under the Mosquito Breeding Prevention Act, the CEA has the power to take legal action against any local government body which fails in its tasks while the Health Ministry through its Public Health Inspectors (PHIs) and the Police can do so against house-owners, according to the Minister.
However, there have been instances where PHIs are not allowed to enter private premises with people considering it a violation of their rights, it is learnt.
When contacted CEA Chairman Charitha Herath said they had filed action against both the Kandy Municipal Council and the Tangalle Urban Council over garbage-management issues, while sending directives to all local authorities to focus on waste management in the prevention of dengue. One of the main responsibilities set on us by the Presidential Task Force is to direct, supervise and monitor local authorities on proper waste management, he said.
Dengue Control Unit Director Dr. Nimalka Pannila Hetti, meanwhile, said that action against people who do not keep their homes and surroundings free of mosquito breeding sites is by district and provincial health officers. In places like Kandy, Kurunegala and Colombo, people have been taken to court and fined, she said.
When private homes or lands are inspected by the PHIs, if found to have dengue breeding sites, a notice is issued to the owner to clean-up the premises within seven days or two weeks, the Sunday Times learns. If they fail to do so, legal action can be taken.
“When the notices are issued, 80% of the people respond and clean their premises immediately but after a few weeks, the situation deteriorates,” a source said, adding that clean-ups should be carried out every week.
It was because dengue prevention and control need a multi-ministry crackdown that the Presidential Task Force was set up in May to “fix” responsibilities at national, provincial, district, divisional and grama seva (village) level, the Sunday Times understands.
The Task Force under President Mahinda Rajapaksa is operating at national level, coordinated by the Health Ministry, with crucial roles being played by the Ministries of Education, Environment, Defence, Public Administration, Local Government and Provincial Councils, Disaster Management and Media.
Explaining that more than 100 countries face the problem of dengue, Minister Sirisena said that Cuba which has experienced this menace for a long time has not been able to eradicate it, while in India’s capital of Delhi more than 100 people die of dengue every day. Sri Lanka has also been a victim of dengue for a long time.
Bti and Bt to the fore, but not miracle answer
Ten thousand units of Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis (Bti) at a cost of US$ 260,000 will be brought from Cuba in two weeks and mainly distributed in areas where water is being stored in large tanks.
Some units will also be distributed among households, a source said, adding that the locally produced Bt will also be available around the same time.
However, Bti and Bt are not the “miracle answer” to the dengue issue. The people and the authorities should not be complacent, thinking that dengue will vanish from the country with the introduction of Bti, the source warned. If sustained clean-up campaigns are not carried out, there will be more and more dengue patients and also deaths.
The other issue that has to be tackled at national level is the garbage collection and disposal all over the country, another source said, otherwise we will never be able to control dengue.
Meanwhile, the Sunday Times learns that Public Health Inspectors (PHIs) who are supposed to check out dengue breeding sites in homes are stretched thin, with only 1,500 deployed all over the country.
There are also only 12,000 Grama Seva Niladharis, it is understood for the whole country to work the village level dengue prevention programme.
Dengue at Badulla
hospital: Docs death followed by nurse critical in ICU
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| Dr. Lakmali
Wijenaike |
Thirty-one year old Dr. Lakmali Wijenaike, attached to the Badulla Hospital died of dengue last Monday.
She was attached to the children’s unit of the hospital at the time she contracted the disease and underwent treatment at the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of the same hospital.
Meanwhile, a nurse working at the same hospital is currently receiving treatment for dengue and is said to be in a serious condition at the ICU. It is also reported that around 50 other dengue patients were warded at the Badulla hospital.
In the meantime it is reported that many dengue patients are undergoing treatment in several government hospitals with Kalubowila having as many as 81. There are 40 others at the Lady Ridgeway Children’s Hospital where 15 children succumbed to the disease last month alone. |
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