Dengue cases in Tamil Nadu have crossed 20,000 this year, while Chennai has recorded 4,592 cases without any reported death so far, Health Secretary Darez Ahamed said on Sunday as the city intensified mosquito-control and monsoon-preparedness measures.
Ahamed made the statement after inspecting dengue-prevention work in Teynampet. He said all fever cases were being tested to support early diagnosis and appropriate management, while seasonal variations had contributed to the rise in dengue cases.
“The important task is to manage the situation and bring down the numbers,” Ahamed said. He added that the situation in Chennai had stabilised following preventive measures.
Chennai recorded 1,293 dengue cases in September and conducted 16,254 tests this year, according to the report. Greater Chennai Corporation Commissioner GS Sameeran said 46 cases were reported on Saturday, compared with 39 the previous day, indicating that the civic body was continuing to track daily changes in infections.
The corporation has deployed 3,703 mosquito-control workers and is conducting more than 100 medical camps each day. It has also deployed 1,250 machines for larvicidal spraying. The civic body has imposed fines totalling Rs 7.2 lakh over the past month on establishments and households for failing to remove waste, a measure linked to efforts to reduce mosquito-breeding conditions.
The city’s dengue response is being coordinated with preparations for the northeast monsoon, when water accumulation and clogged drains can complicate mosquito-control operations and increase pressure on civic services. Chennai is accelerating stormwater-drain works ahead of the monsoon, with desilting under way across drains managed by the corporation and the Highways Department.
Of more than 3,000 km of drains under the corporation and 250 km under the Highways Department, 1,600 km had been identified as blocked. Desilting has been completed along 1,400 km of that identified stretch, while work on the remaining 200 km is expected to be completed this week. The civic body said this would take completion to 99 per cent of the identified desilting work.
Sameeran said the State government had allocated Rs 1,100 crore to clear pending payments and provided a Rs 300 crore loan. Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay had also allocated Rs 100 crore for monsoon-preparedness works, for which tenders had been initiated, he said.
The corporation has kept 215 relief centres and 111 community kitchens ready for the monsoon. Desilting of 44 canals and drone-based biological interventions are also under way, according to the commissioner.
Officials said vector-control operations would continue as the city enters the monsoon period. The next operational focus is the completion of the remaining 200 km of identified blocked drains and the continued monitoring of fever cases and dengue infections.
