Declare War Against Dengue, Chikungunya, Arvind Kejriwal Tells Delhiites

The chief minister was speaking at the inauguration ceremony of the ‘Perfect Health Mela’

New Delhi:  Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has asked city residents to devote ten minutes everyday to inspect their household for signs of mosquito-breeding as a means to prevent dengue and chikungunya.

The chief minister was speaking at the inauguration ceremony of the ‘Perfect Health Mela’, a health fair organised from October 4-8 at the Talkatora Stadium here by an NGO.

“I, Delhi health minister and deputy chief minister, did a lot of research, and we realised that if people, in every household, devoted at least 10 minutes in the morning to check any signs of mosquito-breeding or potential places of breeding, we can prevent the occurrences of dengue and chikungunya,” Mr Kejriwal said.

Vector-borne diseases dengue and chikungunya are caused by the aedes agypti mosquito, which breeds in clear water. The anopheles mosquito, which causes malaria, can breed in both fresh and muddy water.

“Prevention is better than cure and therefore, people of Delhi must resolve that they will declare a war against vector-borne diseases. This year the number of cases of dengue and chikungunya compared to those recorded last year, are a lot less.

“We had started a campaign about one-and-a-half month ago and we have also made a film (educational) on it,” Mr Kejriwal said.

The Delhi government through outdoor campaigns and advertisements inside metro coaches has been raising awareness about prevention of dengue and chikungunya. The punchline being ‘Delhi residents declare a war against dengue and chikungunya’.

At least 756 fresh cases of dengue have been reported in the city till September 30, taking the number of people affected by the vector-borne disease this season to 3,865, according to the latest municipal report.

The number of malaria and chikungunya cases recorded in the same period stood at 95 and 589, respectively.