Baby ponds posing grave health hazard

Tanks turn into mosquito breeding sites, lament residents

After the Ganesh and Bathukamma festivities, man-made tanks have turned into breeding sites for mosquitoes as the corporation has not cleared the flowers left behind in them. Residents living near the tanks have experienced a sudden rise in the number of mosquitoes. They said that if the situation prevailed, winter would be a nightmare and mosquito-borne diseases would become common.

The civic body spent `20 crore to construct baby ponds at Kapra, Cherlapally, Serilingampally, Kukatpally, Raidurg and other places to ease the pressure on Hussainsagar but did nothing to clean them up after the festivals. These tanks have now turned sets where mosquitoes are proliferating.

Mr P. Gopi Balakrishna, a resident of Nacharam, alleged that the GHMC entomology staff was not performing fogging and anti-larval operations but was forging signatures to show that they had carried out the exercise.

“The mosquito menace has become unbearable and we cannot step outside our houses. No fogging operation have been conducted for a year,” Mr Balakrishna said.

K. Shiva Kalyani a resident of Kukatpally, said the corporation had been conducting anti-larval operations once a week but not fogging.

“Particularly after the conclusion of the Bathukamma festival, the mosquito menace has increased but the GHMC officials are turning a blind eye to the issue,” she said.

Asked about the issue, a senior GHMC official admitted the stagnant water in the tanks was providing a place for mosquitoes to breed. He said the GHMC was doing its best by performing fogging operations regularly.

Around 3,500 houses have been identified as mosquito breeding spots. “Larvicides will be used in such houses along with fogging,” he said.