Air travellers may have brought dengue in the country: Minister
Mentioning that Bangladesh did not have Aedes mosquitoes before, Local Government and Rural Development (LGRD) Minister Md Tajul Islam has said that air travellers may have brought the disease with them in the country.
He said that the government is agitated over the current dengue situation in the country.
"We have developed resistance against dengue since 2019. The government ensured relative progress in 2020 in tackling the dengue menace but the situation has deteriorated this year," he said at the 5th inter-ministerial meeting on the prevention of mosquito-borne diseases arranged by the local government department at the Secretariat Sunday (30 October).
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The minister, however, said the dengue situation is worse in neighbouring countries.
Emphasising that the public should be involved in the fight against dengue, Tajul Islam said concerned individuals must play a proper role in raising awareness among people at all levels.
Analysing the latest data on dengue cases in other Asian countries including Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines and India, the minister noted that the number of dengue patients in Bangladesh is fewer compared to these countries.
"A change in weather is affecting the number of dengue cases this year. The outbreak of dengue is increasing due to intermittent rains," he added.
The minister said that the mayors of the two city corporations have taken all kinds of programmes to control Aedes mosquitoes.
