Thursday dengue drive: Pudupet under Corporation, health department check

The Pudupettai market was the focus of the authorities on Thursday, after the government declared Thursdays as ‘anti-dengue’ day. The inspection was jointly carried out by Corporation Commissioner, D Karthikeyan and State Health Secretary, J Radhakrishnan. 

As many as 11 conservancy workers from the Corporation as well as officials from the Public Health Department participated in the inspection. They carried 14 fogging machines, 11 handheld smoke machines and two fumigation vehicles to stop mosquito breeding. The water tanks in the locality were also surveyed and awareness stickers were handed out to the public. The area was also scouted for unused objects such as coconut shells, tyres, household appliances and other such items, which were discarded by the officials from the civic body. 

The 200 wards in the city will be divided into 2,035 areas and preventive measures will be carried out by 18,000 people deployed for this purpose. The Corporation has also started levying a penalty on those who are found harbouring mosquito breeding spots. 

First time offenders will be levied Rs 2,000 while for those who are repeating it, the fine will be Rs 5,000. Repeat offenders will be charged Rs 10,000. The Corporation has collected Rs. 12.5 lakh as penalty so far, said sources. 

The attention to the Pudupet Market by the officials has come as a relief to the residents. A resident, on the condition of anonymity, said, “The Corporation has removed these unused objects, which have been lying on the road for years now. Usually, the local authorities don’t pay attention to this street. 

Now, with the dengue scare, the officials are giving importance to such streets. For residents, who have to put up with mosquito breeding due to waste lying all over, the inspection and removal of the trash is good news.”