Fighting dengue in Dhaka a failure: Who to blame?

Highlights

• 60% of dengue patients, deaths in the country are in Dhaka
• Many alleged that city corporations failed to protect the citizens from dengue as what they did was mere show off
• Citizens complain that the authorities spread mosquito repellent but not regularly
• Fogging machines are used only in the main roads, not inside the alleys
• Drains and water bodies are not cleaned to destroy the breeding grounds of mosquitoes

The dengue situation in the capital has worsened this year with record deaths and highest number of patients in history despite seeming efforts of the two city corporations including increasing budget allocation and regular anti-mosquito drives to control the disease.

According to sources, around 60% of the dengue deaths and the number of patients in the country are in Dhaka.

The authorities are conducting regular anti-mosquito drives at different areas under their jurisdiction including combing operations to destroy the breeding grounds of Aedes mosquitos.

Many have also been fined by the mobile courts for creating a favourable environment for the spread of mosquitoes in the city.

However, many alleged that all the efforts of the city corporations have failed to protect the citizens from dengue as they have been performed as mere show off.

Citizens complain that the authorities spread mosquito repellent but not regularly in all the areas of the city. The fogging machines are used only in the main roads, not inside the alleys.

They also do not clean the drains and water bodies to destroy the breeding grounds of mosquitoes, they say.

Sharmin Islam, a resident of the Paschim Kafrul area of ​​Dhaka North City Corporation, said "You cannot find a single house that does not have a dengue patient now. The city corporation uses fogging machines only in the main roads one or two times per month."

Meanwhile, officials of both the city corporations blamed climate change and people's unawareness for the situation.

The spread of Aedes mosquitoes has increased due to untimely rains and a large part of Dhaka's patients has come from other districts, they claim.

City corporation sources say in 2022-23 FY, the two city corporations have allocated Tk147 crore for mosquito control – Tk101 crore for Dhaka North City Corporation, and Tk45.75 crore for Dhaka South City Corporation.

Md Asif Iqbal, senior insect control officer, Dhaka North City Corporation, told TBS, "We have been doing temephos insecticide larvicide in the morning and Malathion 5EC fogging in the evening for three years two days per week in an area.  An average of 12-15 anti-mosquito workers and two supervisors are working in each of the 54 wards in the DNCC."

Dhaka North City Corporation Chief Health Officer Brig Gen Md Zobaidur Rahman said, "We are mixing tablets in the metres of the Wasa so that no Aedes mosquito can be born there for three months.

Dr Fazle Shamsul Kabir, chief health officer, Dhaka South City Corporation, said, "Our employees regularly carry out anti-mosquito drives in each area after every four days. We have 13 mosquito workers and one supervisor in each of the 75 wards."

Experts say if the larvae of aedes mosquito could be contained, the number of cases will be close to zero.

Professor Dr Nazmul Islam, director of the Communicable Disease Control Unit of DGHS, told The Business Standard, "The crisis is expected to come under control from the third week of this month. But, the number of cases will increase if it rains again in the meantime."

Professor Dr Kabirul Bashar, entomologist and scientist, told The Business Standard, said, "Integrated mosquito management activities should be continued throughout the year. For this, the manpower should be increased in the offices concerned."

Professor Dr Be-Nazir Ahmed, former director of Communicable Disease Control at the Directorate of Health, said, If the same insecticide is used for a long time, it becomes tolerable to mosquitoes. That is why regular testing of the pesticides is necessary."

According to sources, this year, dengue has spread in 62 districts of the country except Kurigram and Gaibandha. An average of 30 people are hospitalized with dengue every hour. Chattogram, Cox's Bazar, Madaripur, Cumilla and Gazipur have the highest number of patients outside Dhaka.

Till 8am on Friday, the number of dengue deaths increased to 193 this year. This is the highest number of dengue deaths in a calendar year in the country's history.

According to the Department of Health, 266 new dengue patients have been admitted to different hospitals in the country till Friday morning. Among them 150 patients are in Dhaka and 116 outside Dhaka.

In the first 11 days of this November, 8,728 people were infected with dengue and 52 people died during this period.