Anti-larval drive on infested Musi

With the Musi river identified as one of the prime mosquito breeding waterways in the city, the GHMC on Thursday said it was taking up anti-larval operations along with installation of mosquito traps, along a 21-km stretch of the river beginning from Bapu Ghat near Langar Houz to Nagole.

Three mosquito trapscum-killing units are being set up at Bapu Ghat, Laxminagar, and Jiyaguda as part of the exercise, according to GHMC chief entomologist, Dr A. Rambabu.

“Each of these traps releases carbon dioxide to attract mosquitoes from a one-acre radius. We are simultaneously taking up anti-larval operations and cleaning up the Musi river banks,” he said.

The Musi flows through 14 GHMC divisions from the four zones of Khairatabad, Charminar, L.B. Nagar and Secunderabad.

Three special units have been formed with four entomologists overseeing the operations.

For anti-larval operations, the GHMC has pressed into service a drone, in addition to six vehicle-mounted fogging machines, as well as 15 portable fogging machines.

According to the Musi Riverfront Development Corporation chairman, D. Sudheer Reddy, the corporation was planning to introduce an internet of things-enabled mosquito killing machine. “The machine can estimate the number of mosquitoes trapped and identify the species of the mosquitoes. This will help identify locations where denguecausing Aedes egyptii mosquitoes are found to help prevent the disease,” he said.

GHMC officials said anti-larval operations are to be taken up along the river’s stretch between Attapur Bridge and Dilsukhnagar bus depot, Yerafnagar nala in Banjara Hills to Hussainsagar, Domalguda nala, and the nala exiting from Hussainsagar up to Musi river. These areas were found to be mosquito-breeding sources.