Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) Mayor Barrister Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh on Wednesday announced that wards that have recorded at least 10 dengue patients in the past week will be declared as “Red Wards” from Saturday. 

“We will begin a special ward-wise campaign from Saturday to mark the high-risk wards that are more susceptible to dengue,” he said during a special cleaning program to eradicate Aedes mosquito breeding sites at the Dhaka University campus.

“Residents and establishment owners in these ‘Red Wards’ will be urged to keep their premises clean during the special campaign. Besides, our sanitation workers and mosquito extermination teams will also ensure cleanliness in these wards,” he said. 

Mayor Taposh expressed determination to destroy Aedes mosquito breeding grounds with everyone's cooperation, stating: "To keep ourselves and our families safe, it is our paramount duty to maintain cleanliness in our surroundings and destroy environments conducive to mosquito larvae."

Calling on city residents to proactively participate in cleanliness drives, he said: "We are already conducting extensive programs to control dengue. We anticipated a spike in dengue cases this season, but the situation has remained stable.”

“The Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) has also confirmed that the dengue situation in Dhaka city is now under control. The number of patients is considerably decreasing," he added.

Yearly fatalities from dengue have crossed the grim 500 mark for the first time in the country, as 13 more deaths were reported from the mosquito-borne disease in the last 24 hours till Wednesday morning.

During the 24 hours, some 2,070 more patients were hospitalized with the viral fever, according to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS). 

The country’s death toll and total caseload from dengue now stand at 506 and 106,429, respectively, this year.

Of the latest deaths, eight were in Dhaka city alone.