RAWALPINDI: The district administration has asked the Rawalpindi Municipal Corporation (RMC) to take action against the use of residential properties for commercial purposes in union council (UC) 20, as such areas can become breeding grounds for dengue larvae.

A meeting in this regard was chaired by Additional Deputy Commissioner Saima Younas, and attended by District Health Authority CEO Dr Khalid Mehmood and other senior officials.

The meeting was informed that an ice cream factory is running in a residential area in UC 20, where dengue larvae has been found.

“Ice factories have also been established in other parts of the city, and have failed to adopt measures to prevent the breeding of dengue mosquitoes while the health authority and RMC have failed to take action,” a senior official told Dawn after the meeting.

Residences being used for commercial purposes in UC 20 are breeding grounds for dengue larvae

In many parts of the city, in low-lying areas, fogging has not been conducted and anti-dengue teams have only visited prominent locations, he said, adding that work needs to start from the low-lying areas around Leh Nullah.

The health authority and RMC have received many complaints from residents, the official said, but the authorities have been focused on eliminating dengue larvae in and around Murree Road.

“In the past, the dengue virus erupted in Amarpura, Gawalmandi and adjoining areas, but this time the health department has failed to pay attention,” he said.

He added that patients who have contracted the dengue virus in the past may fall victim to it again.

During the meeting, Ms Younas expressed concerns over the facts and figures presented to the participants.

She said the health authority should report the exact facts and figures, as the district administration will start monitoring the facts.

She added that arrangements should be made for fogging in low-lying areas.

She said the allied hospitals and health department should arrange for medicines used to treat dengue and stock sufficient supplies so that patients do not suffer.

Ms Younas said the elimination of the dengue virus would be ensured in the coming days.

The meeting was also told that while there have not been any serious dengue virus patients in the Rawalpindi district and no deaths have been reported thus far, teams in the last three days found 700 dengue larvae from parts of the city.

The virus has spread in Gujar Khan, the meeting was informed, and most patients were arriving from the rural areas.

Dengue larvae was found in 214 homes in residential areas, and 17 public locations in Gujar Khan.

Published in Dawn, September 2nd, 2018