PUNE: Sting scare continues to haunt residents with the city recording 207 dengue cases so far this month.Post-monsoon showers in some areas a few days ago, wide fluctuations in day and night temperatures and water stagnation at constructions sites are some of the reasons for the dengue cases.“Most cases are being reported from the fringes. Besides, a few pockets in core city areas are also affected. Compared with last two months, the number of cases is waning,” said Sanjeev Wavare, head of the Pune Municipal Corporation’s (PMC) insect control department.The dengue virus is prominently prevalent in the fringe areas of the city. Almost 60% of the cases reported this year were found among residents living in the jurisdiction of the four ward offices of Dhankawdi-Sahakarnagar, Hadapsar-Mundhwa, Ahmednagar Road-Wadgaonsheri and Bhavani Peth.“The fringe areas are the entry points for many infectious and communicable diseases. Lack of planned development, resulting in poor hygiene and sanitation, is the main reason why people living in these areas are so often affected by the mosquito-borne and waterborne diseases. Water scarcity is also a factor in some areas. In these localities, people tend to store water. Uncovered containers act as the breeding grounds for dengue mosquitoes,” senior paediatrician Sharad Agarkhedkar said.Experts are also intrigued by the fact that why Pune is always in the grip of viral infections. “Mumbai is hot and humid. The climate in Pune, however, fluctuates. Perhaps, the rapid and drastic change in the daily weather helps the virus or the vector thrive. Eco-climatic conditions often have a big role to play, particularly when the vector is the mosquito ,” said a senior scientist from National Institute of Virology (NIV).Activists, however, blamed health officials for doing precious little to curb the mosquito breeding spots.“There are places and areas where residents are grappling with mosquito menace and the civic health officials are only carrying out superficial measures. There has been morbid indifference on the part of the municipal corporation when it comes to checking mosquito-borne diseases. The officials usually wash off their hands by blaming weather and unclean surroundings,” activist Sanjay Dabhade said.The only method of controlling or preventing dengue virus transmission is to combat the vector mosquitoes. “Proper solid waste disposal and improved water storage practices, including covering containers to deny access to egg-laying female mosquitoes, should be followed,” Wavare said.The civic administration considers the dengue cases reported by government-designated sentinel centres as “confirmed”. These centres for vector-borne diseases are located at Kamla Nehru Hospital in Mangalwar Peth and Naidu Hospital on Raja Bahadur Mill Road.The number of “confirmed” dengue cases in Pune had breached the 1,000-mark in 2017, for the first time in a span of 15 years.City’s young adults have been the worst hit by dengue viral infection this year, with most cases reported in the 25-34 age group followed by those between 15 and 24 years.The PMC’s health department carried out an analysis of 616 dengue-infected patients – mainly reported by private hospitals and government run sentinel centres and found these age groups to be the most vulnerable. Besides, it found men were affected more than women.Senior family physician Avinash Bhondwe said, “This has been our observations over the years that young adults are the worst affected by dengue during every season. Workplaces are also breeding grounds of dengue causing mosquitoes. Young adults should take more precautions to ward off the disease.”

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