KARACHI: A year-long vector-control programme has been designed to combat the increasing incidence of dengue in the province with particular focus on Karachi, officials in the Dengue Prevention and Control Programme (DPCP), Sindh, said on Friday.

“Our primary focus is on Karachi, where this disease has grave incidence,” said Dr Masood Solangi, programme manager, DPCP, while speaking at an awareness workshop organised by the programme at the Services Hospital.

He said a tri-weekly fumigation drive would be launched on July 1, which would be comprised of eight rounds, in the metropolis.

“Such 21-day campaigns will continue for the whole year ahead,” said the DPCP official.

Besides, said Dr Solangi, his organisation had devised various other measures in future for which it had submitted a Rs50-million plan to the provincial health ministry and that had duly been approved.

“We’ll put those measures into action in coming weeks.”

He said funds would soon be released to the programme which would be spent on the purchase of fuel for fumigation vehicles and chemical required for spraying various neighbourhoods of the sprawling city.

He said the relevant staff of the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation would be engaged in the fumigation campaigns, while the DPCP would accompany them and make follow-up visits of every area after fumigation.

Speakers at the programme said all hospitals in public and private sectors were diagnosing and imparting treatment to patients inflicted with the mosquito-borne disease. Thus, they advised the general public to rush to the nearest hospital when they detect symptoms of the disease.

Dr Shahana Urooj Kazmi, eminent microbiologist and rector of the Dadabhoy Institute of Higher Education, said a huge effort was needed to eradicate the disease, which had permanently inflicted the country’s largest city.

Dr Qamar Abbas Zaidi also spoke.

Published in Dawn, May 27th, 2017