Kovilambakkam RWA carries out fogging
The Hindu
BKR Residents Welfare Association at Sunnambu Kolathur believes in the power of self-help
In the last four years, BKR Residents Welfare Association at Sunnambu Kolathur in Kovilambakkam Panchayat has gone all-out to check the spread of mosquito-borne diseases at Bakyalakshmi Nagar, Krishna Nagar and Raja Nagar, which are together known as ‘BKR’. Dissatified with the fogging operations of the Panchayat as it was not carried out frequently, the Association was forced to take up larvicide exercise in 2017, spending out of its pockets for the purchase of a fogging machine. “Until five years ago, mosquito-borne diseases were rampant in our colony, especially during monsoon, as water remained stagnant in many vacant plots. The Panchayat did not spray the insectide every day. Each time, we had to call them to carry out fogging. We clearly saw that the exercise needed to be ramped up to keep the vector-borne diseases under check. Hence, the Association decided to own a fogging machine. It cost us ₹49,000. And for spraying the entire colony per day, it will cost around ₹600, which includes the cost of pesticides, fuel for the machine, and wages for the workers. As cases of mosquito-borne diseases have dropped drastically, the expenditure is clearly well worth it. We carry out the spraying exercise on a regular basis, say continuously for 10 days. Then again after a few days, we resume it,” says G. Venkataramesh Kumar, the Association president.The election authorities are gearing up for the counting of votes cast in the simultaneous elections to Lok Sabha and Assembly seats in Andhra Pradesh, scheduled to be held on June 4. The Collectors and Election Officers of Visakhapatnam, Anakapalli and Alluri Sitharama Raju (ASR) districts said on May 23 (Thursday) that their teams were ready for the counting of votes.
Responding to the prolonged water scarcity, the residents of the area took to the streets in protest on Wednesday. The protest, which drew attention to their plight, stopped only after the intervention of the police. It was not until 1.30 p.m. that a 4000-litre tanker was finally delivered by BWSSB, providing relief to the water-starved residents.