No sting Operation! Corporation claims mosquito density down

By G Saravanan
Published in The New Indian Express, Chennai on October 8, 2010:

CHENNAI: According to the Corporation, the mosquito density in the city has gone down. But ask any kid in the vicinity and the mosquito sting marks he shows you will be an answer in themselves.
If you go by the Corporation’s claim, its survey last week revealed that mosquito density had dropped by 15-20 per cent in the city. Do an independent cross-verification in the surveyed areas and you will find that the ground reality is entirely different.
While the field report (collected on September 23) says that mosquito density in areas along the Otteri Nullah in Ward 68 (Anna Nagar East) had come down, residents from the area dispute the claim, saying that the menace, in fact, had increased.
“We have been facing the onslaught of the winged monsters every year, and particularly, the last few months were very horrible to all the locals here,” informs Jeevarathinam, a resident.
It’s not Anna Nagar East alone that is at its wits’ end. Many parts across the Corporation’s 10 zones face similar problems. Zones 2 (Basin Bridge), 3 (Pulianthope) and 5 (Kilpauk) are the worst hit.
Not just has the survey thrown up trashy figures, the Corporation still does not have the big picture of mosquito density across the city. The reason: many of its field staff never files their data on time.
Residents also question the method of collecting data, which they argue lacks authentication and cross verification by higher officials of the Corporation health department.
According to sources, the civic body’s 20 field staff visit select spots (notified by zonal entomologists) twice a day to collect data. In the first visit ( from 7.30 am to 8.30 am), they use a small vessel to collect samples of larvae from waterways and storm water drains. In the evening (from 5.30 pm to 7.30 pm), they use a suction tube to collect adult mosquitoes from designated spots near slums. The numbers they get are extrapolated to arrive at the mosquito density.
Whatever the method, have we really arrived to a reliable estimate of the mosquito population? The answer is a big no. Time the Corporation get its act together.