Karachi Commissioner Roshan Ali Shaikh on Thursday issued a warning to all civic agencies in the city about possible outbreak of dengue fever during next four months.
“June to October are the months during which the vulnerability of citizens to the fever increases,” he told participants of the meeting held in his office. The commissioner directed that KMC, KDA, KPT, Defence Housing Authority and Cantonment Boards must come together to raise public awareness about prevention, control and management of the ailment that could otherwise be fatal.
He on the occasion also constituted a committee comprising representatives of above mentioned bodies as well as those from SITE Association and FPCCI to approve a uniform design for banners and advertisements to be released to the media for public awareness about the disease itself and its prevention, control and management.
The committee was authorised to ensure uniformity in the design of banners but also in the content of public awareness messages, to be issued to the media. It was also assigned the responsibility to keep vigil in their display and issuance in all parts of the city by all concerned agencies. The commissioner of Karachi said the present time was the most appropriate time to make people convinced that keeping clean their houses and their neighbourhoods was their collective responsibility while regular and proper collection of disposal, regular anti mosquito spray was the responsibility of the civic agencies.
Roshan Ali Shaikh said neither the masses nor the agencies must allow presence of water pools as these are not only the breeding points for aedes egypti causing dengue but also for mosquitoes that cause malaria.
“People must be reminded that clean water kept uncovered provide sanctuary to mosquitoes that cause dengue while stagnant and polluted water ponds contribute to breeding of malaria causing mosquitoes,” he said.
The commissioner said public education is all the more important as the virus of dengue will persist in our environs for quite some time. “According to data compiled by dengue surveillance cell in Karachi 46 people have been confirmed to be dengue positive during first four and a half months of the current year,” he said. The meeting, among others was also attended by additional commissioner of city, Rubina Asif.
Civic agencies alerted against possible outbreak of dengue
