Dengue on the wane

Nadira Gunatilleke

Only 272 dengue cases had been reported within this month and no deaths reported so far in the month of September. There have been 29,353 dengue cases reported throughout the country during this year (upto September 7) and the number of deaths reported during the same period is 208, Health Ministry sources said.

According to sources the highest number of dengue cases had been reported from Colombo (5,064), Gampaha (3,469), Jaffna (2,645) and Ratnapura (2,336). There were 4,038 dengue cases and 18 deaths reported last month (August). The number of cases reported in July was 5,949 and there were 46 deaths in the same month. Thirty deaths reported in June.

The Medical Research Institute (MRI) will hand over the full report on locally produced BT (Bacillus Thuringiensis) bacteria to Health Minister Maithripala Sirisena soon after concluding two ongoing studies to find out the effectiveness of the bacteria.

The Health Department currently issues locally produced BT bacteria to any Provincial/Regional Health Authority on request, a Ministry spokesman said.

The BTI (Bacillus Thuringiensis Israelensisbactereia) ordered from Cuba will arrive in Sri Lanka by next week. It will be used for a pilot project in Kandy soon after it arrive from Cuba, he added.