The national Capital reported an alarming surge in dengue cases with 1,171 fresh cases reported in a week and nine reported deaths due to it this year, according to a civic report released on Monday.
With this, the total number of persons affected with dengue this year has reached 2,708 till November 6, the report said.
A senior civic body official said that 319 more cases of dengue reported in Delhi but patients were infected in other cities and traced in Delhi while, 78 patients infected with the disease did not provide their address.
According to the data, this is the highest number of fatalities due to dengue recorded in a year in the national capital since 2017 when the total death count officially reported had stood at 10, same as in 2016 (10).
In 2015, the city had witnessed a massive outbreak of dengue, when the number of dengue cases reported has crossed 10,600 in October itself, making it the worst outbreak of the vector-borne disease in the national capital since 1996.
As per the data provided by the civic agencies, a total of 1,072 cases and one death were logged in the entire year in 2020. The number of deaths due to dengue had stood at two (2019); four (2018); 10 (2017); and 10 (2016).
Dengue mosquito larvae breed in clear, standing water, while those of malaria thrive even in dirty water. Cases of vector-borne diseases are usually reported between July and November, but the period may stretch till mid-December.
Also, 166 cases of malaria and 88 cases of chikungunya have also been reported this year in Delhi. In the previous years, the total dengue cases reported were 4431 (2016), 4726 (2017), 2798 (2018), 2036 (2019) and 1072 (2020), as per the report.
Malaria, dengue and chikungunya are accompanied with high fever and therefore, doctors feel that people might suspect that they have contracted Covid-19.