Even as the Covid-19 pandemic rages, the steadily rising number of dengue patients in Chhattisgarh's Durg district is forcing the administration to battle the mosquito-borne disease.

Presiding over a meeting, Durg District Collector Ankit Anand said a three-pronged strategy has to be adopted to fight the epidemic.

“The first strategy should be to eliminate larvae of mosquitoes for which anti-larvae drive has to be undertaken. All the stored water and possible breeding grounds should be checked for larvae and destroyed.

"Secondly, spraying to eliminate adult mosquitoes has to be done targeting the residential areas. The third one is the diagnosis. It has also to be done simultaneously to identify the patients to ensure their proper treatment,” he said.

He added, that as the larvae of mosquito, which carries dengue, grows in clean water, the anti-larvae drive should run, especially in public places.

The Collector said five identified hospitals in Durg will provide treatment to dengue patients:, Durg District Hospital, Sector 9 Hospital, Sparsh Hospital, Shankaracharya Hospital and BM Shah Hospital. All of them will have isolation wards to treat dengue. Representatives of all the hospitals were present at the meeting.

The Collector said that the best time to spray should be between 5 am and 7 am and then after the sun sets.

Anand directed both the Health department and the Municipal Corporation staff to work in coordination.

Nodal officers have been deputed for exclusive wards in the District Hospital to ensure proper treatment of patients.

Durg district, especially Bhilai area, has been reporting dengue deaths for the last two years. On May 15, four cases were detected after which Durg and Bhilai Corporations began door-to-door survey to take blood samples for tests.