Although cases of dengue and other hazardous viruses have been reported in the city, the administration of Karachi Municipal Corporation (KMC) seems slothful in expediting and extensively covering all the city areas in the ongoing fumigation campaign.
The health department of KMC had announced to carry out extensive fumigation campaign in the city, which started from March 16 aiming at to eliminate mosquitoes, which are considered the sources of spreading malaria and dengue fever. Sources said that despite KMC and DMCs officials' claims that most of the city areas were covered during the ongoing fumigation drive, residents of various localities of the metropolis complain that no fumigation has been carried out in their respective areas.
According to the residents, in different areas of district Malir, South, Central, East and West including Layari, FB area, Malir, Karaimabad, Safora Goth, Shanti Nagar, Patel Para, Gurumander, Garden, Gulshan-e-Iqbal Shoe Market Sohrab Goth, Paposh fumigation has not been carried out.
Sources alleged that concerned officers of District Municipal Administrations (DMCs) have submitted written reports with Health Department of KMC, stating that fumigation drive has been completed in their respective areas. But citizens are complaining that they are still braving the onslaught of mosquitoes in their areas especially in the evening.
They said that they had not yet observed any kind of fumigation in their areas, adding that nothing was done in response to the complains complaints lodged on '1339'. Sources said KMC has also failed to target low-lying areas and drains to eliminate mosquitoes. The Dengue Surveillance Cell (DSC) at Civil Hospital, Karachi confirmed four cases of the fever were reported last week. From January to date, a total of 29 dengue cases have been reported and treated successfully.
Last year, out of 1,079 positive dengue cases, 858 were reported from Karachi and 221 from the rest of the 22 districts of Sindh. As many as 75 and 26 cases of dengue were reported in Hyderabad and Tando Mohammad, respectively. An official of KMC told Business Recorder that ongoing campaign seems to be proved unsuccessful like past two campaigns due to the negligence of the concerned officials.
When contacted Senior Director Health KMC Shokat Zaman said that almost all parts of city had been covered during the current fumigation drive. When Business Required pointed out some areas where fumigation was not carried out, he replied that the concerned officials had intimated him that fumigation had been carried out in these areas. He said that the remaining areas would be covered in next two days.