Dengue lurks in ‘safe places’

Some govt institutions worst culprits:

A major dengue prevention programme will begin today in all state institutions. It will be carried out under the guidance of Secretary to the Ministry of Defence and Urban Development Gotabhaya Rajapaksa. The programme aims to control mosquito breeding. It will be implemented in all ministries, government departments, corporations and all other state affiliated institutions.

Inspections of premises will be performed by teams comprising health officials, security officials, and employees of the institutions.

Some government institutions are seen as the worst culprits when it comes to dengue mosquito breeding, Defence and Urban Development Ministry Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa said. This is on account of the fact that proper maintenance of buildings is not carried out and stagnant water is allowed to accumulate in places like gutters and drains, he said.

Speaking to a section of the media, the Defence Secretary said the areas that are most notorious when it comes to dengue mosquito breeding were Kolonnawa, Mount Lavinia and Dehiwela.

The Secretary quoted health authorities as saying that over the past couple of years, there has been a reduction in dengue from 15 percent to four percent in the heart of Colombo. He said most dengue fatalities however are in Colombo, but there was a greater incidence of dengue in outstation areas.

Secretary Rajapaksa identified gutters,discarded yogurt cups, beer cans and other disposables discarded from households as main sources of dengue. It should be noted that refrigerator trays where water accumulates is also a possible dengue breeding site, he added.