KMC visits malaria pockets, serves 160 notices to violators
The Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) health workers visited 600 construction sites and served 160 notices under Section 496A of the KMC Act during its week-long programme observing Malaria Week from April 26 to May 3.
The primary aim was to raise awareness about malaria protection and its eradication in Kolkata by 2030. “The notice under 496 A has a provision that if a person does not comply with our directions regarding destruction of detected malaria pockets within seven days, we can take legal steps, including taking them to the municipal court. This proved to be effective, apart from two residences that have sought a few days of time. About 158-odd did the needful,” said Debashis Biswas, KMC’s ex-officio chief vector control officer.
Among the 600 construction sites surveyed, the anopheles larvae, responsible for causing malaria, was detected in two at Girish Park area in north Kolkata. They were destroyed. Six malaria cases were found in Kolkata during the surveillance.
All of them were affected by Plasmodium Vivax parasite. In Kolkata, around 93 per cent of cases are caused by Plasmodium Vivax and the rest by Plasmodium Falcifarium. The first one is less virulent than the second. “Although the weeklong activities covered all the 144 wards of the civic body, our emphasis was on 69 wards earmarked as malaria prone on the basis of positive cases last year. About 1,010 leaflets were distributed in these wards to raise awareness,” added Biswas.
The National Centre for Vector Borne Diseases Control gave a call to make the country malaria free by 2030. From January to May 2023, there were 743 malaria positive cases in the city. It dropped to 243 during the same period this year.
Six malaria cases were found in Kolkata during the surveillance. All of them were affected by Plasmodium
Vivax parasite