PATIALA, May 16 — To combat the seasonal surge in dengue cases, Punjab Health Minister Dr Balbir Singh spearheaded a state-level awareness campaign from Patiala under the aegis of National Dengue Day.
The initiative brought together health department officials, civic authorities, NGOs, and residents to promote proactive dengue prevention measures.
Kicking off the campaign from Tripuri, one of Patiala’s most densely inhabited areas, Dr Singh addressed the public at Tanki Wala Chowk, urging citizens to take personal responsibility.
“If you protect yourself from mosquito bites, you protect yourself from dengue,” he said.
The awareness drive centered on inspecting and eliminating mosquito breeding sites—particularly those harbouring stagnant water.
Officials collected water samples from several households, finding dengue larvae in common domestic containers such as water coolers, refrigerator trays, flower pots, bird bowls, and overhead tanks. Inspections also extended to high-risk areas including construction sites, tyre shops and building rooftops.
“Dengue does not breed outside — it breeds inside our homes,” Dr Singh said. “Whether it is a cooler, a flower pot or even a bowl kept for birds, any place with stagnant water can become a breeding site. Our focus is to eliminate these hidden hotspots.”
Describing the campaign as a large-scale mobilization effort, the minister compared the fight against dengue to military defence operations.
“Just like the Indian Army, Air Force and Navy defend our country from the nefarious designs of Pakistan, we have built an army within the Health Department to fight dengue,” he remarked.
“ASHA workers are our infantry. They are supported by 50,000 trained nursing students and an equal number of paramedical staff, civil surgeons, epidemiologists and policy makers. Together, we are launching a coordinated battle to protect our people from dengue.”
The campaign continues across the state with coordinated efforts to raise public awareness and reduce mosquito populations, aiming for an early check on the spread of the disease ahead of peak monsoon season.
