Plans to use drones for mosquito control revived

The Greater Chennai Corporation has once again decided to deploy drones for mosquito control, after Commissioner Gagandeep Singh Bedi instructed officials to use them to save time and manpower.

The civic body had conducted trial runs to kill mosquito larvae by spraying larvicide over waterways. According the completion of the trial, it reported that the larval density came down to 641 from pre-spray density of 5,259 – about 89 per cent reduction.

Also, the requirement of mosquito larvicide oil (MLO) came down while using the drones. While using the conventional manual spray, the civic body used 4,520 litres of MLO for 113.04 km of waterways, which came down to 4,351 litres while using the drones.

However, the plan was said to be dropped considering the expense of procuring drones. “As the green signal has been given, drones will be deployed in a month or two,” an official said.

The Corporation admitted that complaints of mosquito menace have increased in the recent days. “To control the menace, it has been decided to start intensive mosquito control programme across the city. Instructions have been given to conduct fogging operations. Also, breeding spots should be identified so that frequent monitoring can be done,” it said in a statement.

The civic body has segregated the city into 2,129 blocks and has deployed 3,619 workers for mosquito control measures.