Revive the Mosquito Control Department
At a time when the residents of Dhaka are suffering from the unending menace of mosquitoes, the Mosquito Control Department, situated in Old Dhaka, is sitting idle with its limited authority to control the problem. A Daily Star report published on June 9 reveals that the office building of the department itself is a breeding ground for mosquitoes and being used mostly as a warehouse for storing insecticides.
When the department was established in 1948 to eradicate malaria, it had a strong workforce that carried out regular drives against mosquitoes and the breeding grounds. But currently, its 281-strong staff have little to do because the department is not empowered enough to carry out any activity on its own. Its main activity now is to distribute insecticides to all the zones under Dhaka South City Corporation and Dhaka North City Corporation, whose actions in controlling the problem have not been adequate.
And while the department is sitting idle with its limited impact, the residents of Dhaka are bearing the brunt. Cases of dengue and chikunguniya have risen alarmingly during the last few years, as our two city corporations have been ineffective in eradicating these life-threatening mosquitoes. According to the Department of Health, around 10,148 people were diagnosed with dengue in 2018, with 26 deaths reported.
In order to fight the menace in Dhaka, it is imperative that the government make the department effective again. It should get full authority to start the mosquito eradication campaign all over again, as it did in the past, quite successfully at that. It could be brought under the two city corporations so that the anti-mosquito drive is dovetailed and efforts economised. It is also important that the department be able to continue with its research activities relating to mosquito control.
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