Anish Narda
The East Delhi Municipal Corporation (EDMC) is geared up to fight dengue, chikungunya and malaria as the rainy season is on the horizon.

Dr. Ajay Handa, Deputy Health Officer, EDMC, told DTMT about the steps being taken as the hard-hitting mosquito months of July and August are just round the corner.

As the rain pours extensively during these months, mosquitoes present themselves, which causes havoc among the people as diseases spread.

EDMC has trained their staff in the best possible way. Mosquito breeding is largely absent during the hot summer months as there is not a lot of water and where there is water it dries up quickly due to the heat. But the mosquitoes start breeding when water collects after the rains, and suddenly hospitals are inundated with cases of vector-borne diseases.

Dr. Ajay Handa explains, “Our staff knows we cannot afford to make mistakes. They’ve been told about new medicines and how and what to do with them”. Dr. Handa also provided us some figures which showed that high risk, densely populated areas such as Patparganj are safe so far, as there has only been one case in this area. Although alarming news came from the south MCD area where there has been identification of four dengue cases.

Dr Handa also mentioned that regular meetings in different zones are taking place to ensure safety of the people. Awareness camps in schools are being held to teach students what to do during these difficult times.

The fact that this EDMC team recently returned from the election duty, and already they are taking so many steps to ensure the safety of the people, shows that they are dedicated to the safety of the citizens and that citizens are in safe hands. However, one has to keep one's fingers crossed.