The Delhi Government on Wednesday said it has released nearly Rs 25 crore to all the three civic bodies to tackle dengue and chikungunya.
According to the Government, it has allocated Rs 11.50 crore and Rs 8.38 crore to North and South Delhi Municipal Corporations respectively to deal with dengue, chikungunya and malaria in the first quarter of the current financial year.
An amount of Rs 4.65 crore has been allocated to East Delhi Municipal Corporation (EDMC) for the same purpose, a senior Government official said.
Earlier in the first meeting of the House on Tuesday, SDMC Commissioner PK Goel informed that dengue breeding checkers (DBCs) would be provided uniforms and identity cards so that they perform their duties without any hindrance.
The issue was brought up during the session of the SDMC House when both ruling BJP and Opposition AAP councillors discussed the matter.
He further said eight supersucker-cum-jetting machines will be purchased soon and tenders will be issued for buying 12 more machines. These machines will help in clearing the water-logging and thus curb breeding of mosquitoes.
However, briefing about the measures taken by the body, South Delhi Mayor Kamaljeet Sehrawat said an action plan has been prepared to tackle the menace of vector-borne diseases this season.
“We are focusing on intensifying awareness drive. There is no treatment available for dengue and chikungunya, so we will have to go all-out to control mosquito-breeding. And, for this the role of our around 1,200 DBCs is crucial. We have raised their remuneration to Rs 14,000 per month which is as per the minimum wages,” she said.
“A toll-free helpline (1800112260) has been made functional, about 160 hoardings in each zone have been installed, 100 billboards have been put up, and a large number of pamphlets have been distributed,” she said.
As per the status report of SDMC, 96 cases of chikungunya have been reported with 10 of them being recorded this month. Meanwhile, 40 cases of dengue have also been registered this year. With seventeen cases of malaria cases in May, the total figure reached to 30 till June 3.