Malaria cases in city touch 10-year high: Official data

Reported cases of vector-borne diseases have seen a jump this year according to early trends, as Delhi has so far recorded 124 malaria cases, the highest in the last decade.

- Paras Singh

The number of dengue cases till July 28 too stood at 277, which is the second highest in the last five years in the corresponding period, according to Municipal Corporation of Delhi data.

This comes amid a surge in the number of identified mosquito breeding sites having larvae—9,117 more such sites were detected in the last seven days alone, which is more than a tenth of the overall number of sites (89,030) detected between January and July, MCD said in its report.

To be sure, the weekly case count on dengue and malaria cases is still low.

According to experts, while mosquito breeding is common in monsoon months, an above-average rainfall this July with multiple moderate to heavy spells and subsequent, lasting waterlogging across the city have likely contributed to the increase in this phenomenon.