A decision has been taken to form a special task force under the supervision of the State Minister for Local Government, Mir Shahe Alam, to strengthen field-level work to prevent dengue and other mosquito-borne diseases. The task force will be responsible for overseeing the activities of various agencies, increasing coordination and implementing emergency measures.
The decision was taken at the first meeting of the ‘National Committee on the Prevention of Dengue and Other Mosquito-borne Diseases’, held at the meeting room of the Local Government Division at the Secretariat on Tuesday (June 23). The meeting was presided over by the Minister for Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives, Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir.
In his address, Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said all the institutions concerned would have to work in a coordinated manner to prevent dengue. Not just government initiative but public awareness and active participation were also extremely important in tackling dengue, he said.
He directed the city corporations, municipalities, district councils and related government and private bodies under the local government ministry to perform their duties more effectively.
The meeting adopted several important decisions to prevent dengue and other mosquito-borne diseases, including: 1. distributing leaflets and awareness materials on a large scale through various offices and agencies; 2. running special dengue-prevention awareness campaigns in schools, colleges and madrasas, involving teachers, students and guardians; 3. strengthening cleanliness drives with local administration, public representatives and civil society; 4. regularly testing and monitoring the quality of fogger machines and mosquito-control work; 5. conducting special drives to identify and destroy Aedes mosquito breeding sites.
The decisions also included: 6. increasing regular inspection of under-construction buildings, rooftop gardens, tyre shops, garages and waterlogged areas; 7. strengthening awareness campaigns in the media and on social media; 8. identifying sites where dengue larvae are found and taking the necessary preventive measures; 9. further strengthening dengue-related monitoring; and 10. quickly collecting and analysing data on dengue patients to identify high-risk areas and take the necessary steps.
Speakers at the meeting said that, as the monsoon raised the risk of a rise in dengue, coordinated and strong preparations were urgently needed from now on. Emphasis was placed on quickly implementing the committee’s decisions, speeding up field-level activity and ensuring the necessary manpower. Representatives of various ministries, agencies and city corporations took part, along with senior officials of Dhaka University, Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University, WASA, the LGED, the DPHE, RAJUK and the Local Government Division.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report