Assam dengue scare: Health department starts breeding gambusia fish to fight mosquito menace in Guwahati

Amid an increase in dengue cases, the Guwahati Municipal Corporation, in partnership with the Government of Assam's Health Department, has commenced the process of releasing mosquito larvae feeding Guppy and Gambusia affinis fish in selected Guwahati city drains. In due future, all wards will be covered gradually.

Talking exclusively to IndiaTodayNE, Senior Medical Officer of Guwahati Municipal Corporation Dr. Kumar Partha Pratim said, “The Health Branch, Guwahati Municipal Corporation (GMC), in collaboration with the Health Department, Government of Assam, for the city of Guwahati every evening during the evening hours. The procedure is carried out by forming two teams of five (five) people each”.

“These two teams are instructed to handle all public complaints or requests in accordance with the daily timetable. Furthermore, a preliminary monthly fogging plan is developed in advance to cover as many locations as feasible in a single month; however, this calendar is amended as needed to meet new areas of concern, public complaints, forthcoming public events, and so on”, Pratim further added.

Assam registered nearly 100 new dengue cases and with the discovery of 91 new cases on November 10, the dengue tally has increased to 642 in the previous 10 days. The Karbi Anglong district reported 65 of the 91 new dengue cases in Assam and  12 dengue cases were identified in and around the city of Guwahati.

According to the reports, the state has registered 551 dengue-positive cases since November 1. 478 of these instances were discovered in the Karbi Anglong area, with the majority of them reported in the Diphu district headquarters.

It needs mention here that the Karbi Anglong Autonomous Council in Assam has ordered the closure of all educational institutions in the hill town of Diphu till November 12.