After successfully controlling the spread of COVID-19 pandemic through proactive measures, the Uttar Pradesh government is working on a war footing to protect the citizens from vector-borne diseases such as dengue, malaria, chikungunya and black fever.
A government spokesman claimed here on Sunday that making foolproof arrangements, including statewide surveillance campaigns, spraying of anti-larva chemicals under extensive mass-scale sanitation, fogging and cleanliness drives, the Yogi Adityanath government was ensuring to reach the last mile within the state to save each and every life.
Scaling up preventive measures against water-borne and vector-borne diseases arising out of seasonal vagaries, the government has directed the health workers to pay door-to-door visits to identify patients with viral fever, vector-borne diseases and with other symptoms. Under the drive, nodal officers have also been appointed in every district to monitor the situation in their respective areas to keep the spread of such diseases in check. Districts such as Firozabad, Agra, Kanpur Nagar and Mathura have been kept under strict surveillance in particular.
So far, nearly 2,073 people have been found to have contracted mosquito-borne diseases in the state. To spread awareness about the disease, people are being advised to take precautionary measures to check the breeding of mosquitoes in and around their houses. In addition, to provide relief to the distressed, the treatment of dengue patients in government hospitals has been made free-of-cost. Apart from this, in pursuance of the chief minister’s orders, availability of pure drinking water is also being ensured in the affected areas.
Controlling the spread of mosquitoes and water-borne diseases is not an easy task but the state government is leaving no stone unturned to eradicate the disease in the state having a population of almost 240 million. On the instructions of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, special teams constituted to undertake surveillance drives to identify people with viral symptoms are also providing medicines to the people suffering from fever, diarrhoea and other illnesses. ASHA and Anganwadi workers have also been paying door-to-door visits to detect ailing patients. On confirmation of one dengue patient, along with ensuring his/her treatment, fogging chemicals such as pyrethrin for mosquito control are also being sprayed in neighbouring houses and localities. The government is also ramping up the presence of medical resources in the state to cater to the needs of every patient.
In his consistent efforts to provide accessible and affordable healthcare to the people of Uttar Pradesh at their doorstep, Yogi Adityanath has also asked officials to resume the Chief Minister’s Jan Arogya Mela (public health fair) from September 19. Instructions have been issued to make preparations in this regard. Along with this, a list of people above 45 years of age who have not yet taken a single dose of the Covid vaccine is also being prepared.
Taking cognisance of the current situation in the state, the chief minister is himself monitoring the progress of the surveillance drive while keeping a check on the sanitation campaigns to prevent any spread of diseases. It may be recalled that the chief minister also paid immediate visits to Firozabad and nearby districts and conducted an on-ground inspection of the condition in the districts.
According to the health officials, the government’s special cleanliness campaign to curb the spread of communicable diseases and vector-borne diseases in the state has played a major role in bringing down the transmission levels. The support and cooperation by the citizens of the state towards the government in controlling the spread of seasonal diseases has also strengthened the state’s fight against them.
According to doctors, as compared to all other communicable diseases, over 17 per cent of people suffer from vector-borne diseases due to which seven lakh people die annually worldwide. Globally, there are nearly 219 million cases of malaria caused by the Anopheles mosquito.