Dengue fever outbreak in Delhi: Capital logs 189 cases so far this year, 20 new cases in August

New Delhi: Nearly 190 dengue cases have been recorded in Delhi 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, 32 in June and 26 in July.

Till August 20, Delhi had logged 189 dengue cases, the report said. On August 13, the number of cases stood at 178. Eleven fresh cases were reported in a week, the report said. No death has been reported so far this year due to the disease, it added.

The national capital has also recorded 40 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 are being recorded earlier this year due to weather conditions that are congenial for mosquito breeding.

Dengue cases over the years

In 2017, Delhi had reported 435 dengue cases during the January 1-August 20 period, according to the report. Last year, the city had recorded 682 dengue cases between January 1 and August 20. During the same period, the number of cases stood at 51 in 2020, 75 in 2019 and 78 in 2018.

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 had witnessed a massive dengue outbreak, with the number of cases crossing 10,600 in October. It was Delhi's worst dengue outbreak since 1996.