With 1100 dengue patients in Bhubaneswar, BJP protests by fogging BMC office

In a unique protest, the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) Bhubaneswar unit fogged the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) office protesting the rise in dengue cases in the Capital city.

As per reports, the BJP, led by its Bhubaneswar District President, Babu Singh assembled in front of the new BMC office at Satya Nagar in Bhubaneswar and protested using fogging machines on a huge poster of Mayor Sulochana Das.

They alleged that the dengue situation in Bhubaneswar has gone beyond control because the Mayor failed to put enough importance on preparations and combat of dengue. The BJP also alleged that the BMC officials are involved in misappropriation in the procurement and spray of anti-mosquito oil.

“Hundreds of dengue patients are detected in the State every day. Hospital beds are running full. Doctors at Capital Hospital are sending the dengue patients to private hospitals. I want to ask the Mayor, is this the kind of preparation you have done?” asked Babu Singh.

As per reports, Bhubaneswar has witnessed a 50 percent spurt in dengue cases in comparison to the last year. While Odisha has so far reported a total of 2,426 dengue cases, as many as 1,059 positive cases among those have been reported from Bhubaneswar alone rendering special healthcare facilities made at the Capital Hospital for the treatment of dengue patients inadequate.

The situation has become so alarming that the BMC has to declare some wards of the city as Red Zones for dengue.

Meanwhile, the Mayor accepted that the dengue situation in Bhubaneswar is alarming and said that a detailed discussion has already been done at the corporation meeting.

“We discussed how to make people aware about the dengue menace, intensifying the cleanliness drive, and fogging activities. I hope the situation will be back under control soon,” said Mayor Sulochana Das.

On the other hand, Kendrapara too is fast becoming a dengue hotspot after Bhubaneswar and Cuttack. As per reports, as many as 12 dengue patients have been identified from Mahakalpada block and nine patients from Kendrapara block as well forcing the district administration to hold an urgent meeting on dengue.

The locals of Kendrapara alleged that the Municipality never fogs the area or undertakes any cleanliness drive to keep Aedis mosquitoes away.

“The district admin never fogs our ward. It never sprays mosquito oil or uses bleaching powder. People here are suffering from fever. We do not know whether it is dengue or something else,” said Kavita, a local.

The ADMO of Kendrapara, Dr Sashikanta Mishra said, “There are 46 dengue cases reported in Kendrapara, out of which 21 cases are migrants. Taking this seriously, we have launched a ‘Dry Day’ drive every Sunday through which we create awareness among people to keep their surroundings dry.”