AHEAD OF RAINY SEASON, PUNJAB HEALTH MINISTER URGES PEOPLE TO CLEAN ALL POSSIBLE WATER-STAGNATION PO

With the rainy season is around the corner, Punjab Health and Family Welfare Minister Dr Balbir Singh on Wednesday chaired a meeting of the state task force to chalk-out a strategy to prevent the outbreak of vector-borne and water borne diseases in the state. Vector-borne diseases include Dengue, Chikunguniya, Malaria, Lymphatic Filariasis, Japanese Encephalitis and Kala Azar. Dr Balbir Singh, while reviewing the activities being carried out by the health department to deal with the threat of dengue, Malaria and other vector and water borne diseases, instructed them to concentrate on hotspots of these diseases, which are already identified and sensitise people of those areas to keep their surroundings clean. He also appealed to people to keep vigil and clean all the vulnerable points including coolers, containers, pots, terrace etc in the houses, offices or any places where there is a possibility of stagnation of water. He said that this is the only way to break the breeding cycle of mosquitoes, who could mature from egg to adult in just one week. The Health Minister also directed the health officials to conduct meetings with General Public and NGOs to make them part of fight against such diseases by keeping vigil on mosquito larvae. Concerned officials were directed to enhance fogging in cities as well as villages. He also directed the officials to involve education department and sensitise students about these diseases and its symptoms as they can play pivotal role in keeping vigil around the stagnant water at or around their houses. Dr Balbir Singh also proposed to use 829 Aam Aadmi Clinics, which witness over 50000 footfall per day, to sensitise people regarding prevention from dengue either via training the staff at clinics or by handing over pamphlets to the people visiting the clinics. Meanwhile, the Health Minister also reviewed the functioning of Aam Aadmi Clinics, Farishtey Scheme and other ongoing projects of the Health Department. In the meeting, Principal Secretary Health Ajoy Sharma, MD National Health Mission Dr Abhinav Trikha, Member Punjab Development Commission Anurag Kundu, Additional Secratary Medical Education and Research Rahul Gupta and other Program officers and officials were present. BOX: PREVENTION BETTER THAN CURE • Clean coolers once a week and keep them dry for a day • Do not keep containers such as flower pots, broken items, tyres, etc on rooftops to prevent waters stagnation • All possible mosquito-breeding sources and sites should be detected and eliminated • Spray insecticides in and around the house • Do not close doors and windows when teams fog insecticides outside • In case of fever, report to a health dispensary immediately • Do not use Ibrufen/Asprin in case of fever, use paracetamol