New fogging machine to control mosquitos soon

Delving into the details, a corporation official explained, “The idea of setting up a vector control monitoring centre has been mooted. Usually, water bodies like canals, rivers and lakes as well as storm water drains are major breeding grounds. We are creating an app, which the field workers can use to record real-time data of larval density in these areas, at designated locations at a specific time, every day. This data will be recorded which will give an idea on the larval density, and help us decide on what course to take to stop the breeding at the initial stage itself.”

This centre, if set up, will be the first-of-its-kind in the country. “Currently, vector control is being done through fogging the city. But a scientific approach has to be taken to ensure Chennai becomes a mosquito-free city. This data will also be helpful in the future to understand how much of the problem has been solved. Once the vector control monitoring centre is operational, it can be used as an example for other cities such as Tiruchy or Coimbatore, to help vector control,” added the source. 

The official said that the civic body currently has a portable fumigator. “That is quite heavy and noisy. It requires five litres of petrol for 45 minutes of fumigation. The new variant that we tried out recently is light weight, less noisy and runs on LPG. This will be used to access smaller areas – such as the interiors of Tamil Nadu Housing Board (TNHB) housing units or in slum areas. The idea is to tackle mosquito menace in a focussed manner. After the testing, the civic body will mull on acquiring this, if it fits the requirements. The Corporation upgrades regularly the sprayers and other equipment to ensure that in case there is a requirement, we have the equipment to tackle the job,” said the source. 

Sources also pointed out that the civic body is looking at live monitoring mosquito breeding grounds in the city to ensure that the breeding is halted at the larval stage itself.