BHUBANESWAR: The mosquito density in the capital city is at an alarmingly high level of 82 units per man per 10 hours which is well beyond the bearable limit of 40-50.
Sources in the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) said this was recorded during a survey in Satya Nagar area of the city in the last week of December.
An official from the BMC health wing attributed the increased density to breeding of nuisant/non-disease causing mosquitoes. The civic body would approach the health directorate for another survey covering multiple locations to get an average and more accurate figure on mosquito density in the city, he added.
Admitting that sanitation has emerged as a major issue, the health official said the clogged Daya West canal and internal drains have turned out as major mosquito breeding grounds.
Residents have been complaining about the unhygienic conditions like stagnant water and waste accumulation in and around the canal as well as other residential areas of the city which provide ideal conditions for mosquito breeding.
Poor bush-cutting measures have also worsened the situation in many residential areas, sources said. BMC officials hoped the cleanliness and beautification drive taken up in multiple localities of the city prior to Pravasi Bharatiya Divas conclave in January might have improved the situation. It would be known only after a fresh survey is carried out, they said.
Following Bhubaneswar (Ekamra) MLA Babu Singh’s representation, H&UD minister Krushna Chandra Mahapatra reviewed BMC’s preparedness on the growing mosquito menace in the city, and assured of all necessary measures in this regard. An official from the sanitation wing said the BMC meeting decided that two more large tractor mounted fogging machines will be procured and fogging activities carried out at least three to four times in every ward each month. “The number of workers deployed for anti-larval measures will also be doubled to speed up the drive,” he said.
BMC sources said, currently the civic body has 20 battery vehicle mounted fogging machines, 30 portable fogging machines and two tractor mounted fogginmachiness.
