Nearly 180 dengue cases have been recorded in the national capital so far this year, according to a civic body report released on Monday.
According to the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) report, the city recorded 23 dengue cases in January, 16 in February, 22 in March, 20 in April, 30 in May, and 32 in June. Till August 13, the capital had logged 178 dengue cases, the report said.
On August 6, the number of cases stood at 174. Four fresh cases were reported in a week, it said. No death has been reported so far this year due to the disease, it added.
In 2017, Delhi had reported 325 cases during the January 1-August 13 periods, according to the report.
Last year, Delhi recorded 68 dengue cases between January 1 and August 13. During the same period, the number of cases stood at 41 in 2020, 57 in 2019, and 69 in 2018. Delhi has also recorded 39 cases of malaria and 13 cases of chikungunya this year, the report said.
Cases of vector-borne diseases are usually reported between July and November, sometimes stretching till mid-December. Civic officials said dengue cases were being recorded earlier this year due to weather conditions that are congenial for mosquito breeding.
Last year, 9,613 dengue cases were recorded in the national capital, the highest since 2015, along with 23 deaths -- the maximum since 2016. Ten deaths each were reported due to dengue in 2016 and 2017, four in 2018, and two in 2019.
According to official data, 4,431 dengue cases were recorded in Delhi in 2016, 4,726 in 2017, 2,798 in 2018, 2,036 in 2019, and 1,072 in 2020.
In 2015, the city witnessed a massive outbreak of dengue with the number of cases crossing 10,600 in October. It was Delhi's worst dengue outbreak since 1996.
