Over 8000 Mumbaikars get BMC notices in 'sting operation'

BMC neutralises 47,000 mosquito breeding spots, sends notice to 8,972 Mumbaikars. The threat of vector-borne diseases is as real as Covid-19
Even as the BMC is focused on fighting the Covid-19 pandemic, the danger of vector-borne diseases lurches in the city. The civic body inspected around 80 lakh suspected spots in the city this year and found more than 47,000 places infested with larvae of dengue and malaria mosquitoes. The mosquitoes found at these places have been destroyed immediately. Apart from that, BMC also served notice to 8,972 people, including hundreds of residents of highrises in posh areas where mosquitoes were reported in various places, including plant pots or refrigerator trays inside people’s houses.
“Statistics from the last few years show that about 80 per cent of the total number of dengue patients were infected in their homes or in the vicinity of their homes. The mosquitoes that spread the dengue originate in stagnant or stored clean water,” said a BMC official.
He said that dengue-causing mosquitoes are generally found in ornamental plants such as feng shui, bamboo and money plants. Mosquitoes have also been found in small quantities of clean water stagnated at various sources such as kitchen utensils, air-conditioning systems and refrigerator trays.
Asked about malaria-spreading mosquitoes, a BMC official said, “The mosquito which spreads malaria also usually originates in clean stagnant water. However, the preferred origin of these types of mosquitoes is somewhat different. For example, wells, water tanks, fountains, cooling towers, water tanks, and water stored at the construction site are the main sources of malaria mosquitoes.
Rajan Naringrekar, BMC’s insecticide officer, said the civic body appeals to citizens from time to time to be alert about the breeding grounds for dengue and malaria mosquitoes. People are advised to change the water at home plant pots frequently and also clean the surrounding areas.
“This year till August 14, we served notice to 9,872 people, including hundreds of households, where suspect water stagnation was reported (larvae found in their plants),” he said.
Naringrekar said that to date the BMC has inspected more than 78 lakh suspects breeding places of dengue mosquitoes. Out of these, larvae of dengue mosquitoes were found at 39481 places.
Similarly, 2.02 lakh suspect spots of malaria mosquitoes were inspected by the BMC pesticide department this year out of which, mosquitoes were found at 7,922 places.
According to Naringrekar, usually, a female mosquito lays 100 to 150 eggs at a time at each of the breeding grounds of these mosquitoes. The average lifespan of a female mosquito is three weeks. During this time, the female lays eggs at least four times in stagnant water. This means that a female mosquito usually produces 400 to 600 mosquitoes. These mosquitoes cause the spread of diseases like dengue and malaria.
Asked about the selection of suspect spots, he said, “Going by the record of the past five years, we declared more than 150 high-risk zones for dengue in the city. Similarly, hundreds of spots were identified as high-risk zones for malaria-causing mosquitoes.

In July 2021, only 557 cases of malaria were reported in the jurisdiction of BMC, around 40 per cent fewer than in the same period last year. According to the data provided by BMC, in July 2020, a total of 954 cases of malaria were reported in the civic area.
However, in July this year, a few more cases of lepto and dengue were reported compared to the same month last year. While last year, dengue and lepto had claimed one life each, no death was reported this year.
In order to curb the spread of diseases like dengue and malaria, houses and their surroundings are regularly inspected by the pesticides department of the BMC to find out the origin of mosquitoes. The workers of the pesticides department of the corporation regularly inspect the targets in a consistent manner by setting targets. Like last year, this year too, the pesticide department of the corporation is working uninterruptedly even in adverse conditions like covid 19.
About 1,500 workers and employees of the pesticides department are on the job – they regularly survey and inspect various places in the city and the premises of buildings.
“The various stages of mosquitoes in stagnant water last for about eight days. Therefore, it is very important for the citizens to take care that the water stored in their house and in the vicinity does not last for more than seven days,” said an officer of BMC’s health department.
The officer said that it is very important to keep the water storage pots dry at least one day a week. Drums are used to store water outside many homes. It also contains a large number of mosquito larvae. For this, the water drums should be kept completely dry one day a week.