Centre steps in to tackle malaria

The civic body won’t be alone in tackling the spread of malaria this
year. With the highest number of malaria cases registered in 2010, the Centre has decided to take charge of the situation in the city. The ministry of health and family welfare will provide aid to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) in malaria control.

The National Vector Borne Disease Control Programme (NVBDCP) and National Institute of Malaria Research (NIMR) will lead the prevention programme. The former is the central nodal agency for prevention and control of the vector borne disease and the other an autonomous body under government’s department of health research.

A team of experts including NIMR director Dr Ashwini Kumar, and Dr GS Sonar and Dr RS Sharma from NVBDCP surveyed pockets of the city on March 28 and 29. According to the findings, the nodal agency will frame guidelines that the BMC will have to adhere to. Dr Girish Ambe, BMC’s executive health officer, said that the report will be submitted within a week.

The guidelines will specify do’s and don’ts for citizens and authorities, like railways, the state and civic body. “During inspection of the railway yard in Parel, the team of experts from Delhi and Goa specified that the railways has to ensure that their chassis and wheels are not breeding grounds for insects,” said a senior civic official.

The team also visited around 10,000 households in Worli Koliwada and BDD chawl to monitor water storage methods. “They termed that regular fogging should be a priority in areas susceptible to spread of malaria and it should be started before the onset of monsoon. The other concern is procurement of ML oil and other paramedics,” the official added.

Additional municipal commissioner Manisha Mhaiskar said that the health officials appreciated the measure taken by the civic body. “The implementation of the guidelines given will commence from first week of April.”

The health ministry will also train doctors in the civic hospitals. Over 20,000 malaria cases and 117 deaths were reported last year. The peak the outbreak was in August with 6,000 cases and 50 deaths. The civic body spent around Rs25 crore for the prevention and control programme.