The city managers decided on Monday to start fumigating the 175 union councils of the Rawalpindi district, except Rawal Town, from Thursday.
The decision was taken in a meeting held at the Rawalpindi Commissioner’s office. National Assembly member Hanif Abbasi chaired the meeting which was attended by acting DCO Saqib Zafar. A Rawalpindi administration spokesman said the TMAs would be responsible for spraying the union councils of the urban areas.
The District Health department would spray the rural areas of Rawalpindi, including Rawal Town.
“All the graveyards, government universities, colleges, schools, hostels and official buildings will be covered through the campaign,” he said.
The Rawalpindi acting DCO Saqib Zafar directed that the campaign be accelerated and that tyre shop owners be instructed especially to ensure that water was not allowed to gather in tyres. He said strict action should be taken against defaulters to minimise the spread of dengue.
During the meeting, the Health EDO and DO gave detailed briefings on the issue. They informed that out of 58 government colleges, awareness seminars about the precautionary measures had already been held in 52, while many more where scheduled to be held in other colleges. They said private educational institutions had been asked to fumigate their respective institutions. Hanif Abbasi directed the Health department to provide anti-dengue spray chemicals at to all the TMAs to start the campaign from 1st March.
Education EDO Qazi Zahoor ul Haq said booklets about dengue preventive measures had been provided by the Punjab government for distribution in the government educational institutions of the district. He added that 50, 000 booklets had been provided to the elementary schools in the district and 100, 000 booklets had been provided to all high schools.
He stated that special classes about dengue awareness were being conducted in all the district’s schools.
Abbasi directed the management of the teaching hospitals to appoint focal people to spread awareness and to establish control rooms where the officials could perform duties round the clock. Medical superintendents of the teaching hospitals said the arrangement for treating dengue patients would be modeled on last year’s numbers.
They said a separate ward in the teaching hospitals and separate counters for dengue patients were being set up in all the hospitals to provide check-up and lab test facilities. Zafar directed the officers of the departments concerned display banners in and around their offices to spread awareness about preventive measures. He added that pamphlets and direction boards should also be installed in the teaching hospitals for the dengue patients and their attendants. Health DO Dr Khalid Randhawa, DHQ MS Dr Sher Khan Niazi, BBH MS Dr Asif Qadir Mir, EDO Imtiaz Ahmed Malik, ADC Talat Mehmood Gondal, ADC Saif Anwar Japha and the district ACs and TMOs were present on the occasion.
