Delhi's dengue death toll rises to 17, case count now over 9,400

Till December 11, the official dengue death tally maintained by the South Delhi Municipal Corporation, the nodal agency for tabulating data on vector-borne diseases in the city, was 15.

The total number of dengue cases have also risen to over 9,400. About 150 fresh cases have been logged in the last one week, far less than what was being reported till two weeks ago.

According to the civic body's report on vector-borne diseases released on Monday, a total of 9,414 dengue cases and 17 deaths have been recorded this season till December 18.

The 54-year-old woman who died of dengue at Jaipur Golden Hospital on November 2 was a resident of Hiranki village. The nine-year-old girl was from Jaitpur and she died at Holy Family Hospital on November 18, officials said.

A total of 1,138 cases have been recorded this month till December 18. In the previous years, the total dengue cases reported were 4,431 in 2016; 4,726 in 2017; 2,798 in 2018; 2,036 in 2019; and 1,072 in 2020, according to the report.

In 2015, the city had witnessed a massive outbreak of dengue with the number of cases crossing 10,600 in October itself, making it the worst outbreak of the vector-borne disease in the national capital since 1996.

The number of dengue fatalities this year is the highest in the national capital since 2016 when the officially reported death count was 10. Delhi had recorded two deaths due to dengue in 2019, four in 2018, and 10 each in 2017 and 2016.

The number of deaths due to dengue in years preceding 2020, was two in 2019; four in 2018; 10 in both and 2016.

On November 17, the city had a total of 5,277 dengue cases, making it the highest number of cases of the vector-borne disease recorded in the national capital in a year since 2015. In September, 217 cases were logged, the highest count for the month in three years.

The number of cases reported for the January 1-December 18 period in the previous five years were -- 1,062 in 2020; 1,998 in 2019; 2,798 in 2018; 4,711 in 2017 and 4,384 in 2016, according to the report.

A total of 1,072 cases and one death, were logged in 2020. The 6,739 cases reported in November is by far the highest number of cases recorded in a month this year. It is also the highest count for November, in at least six years.

The month-wise distribution of dengue cases in 2021 stands as -- January zero, February two, March five, April 10, May 12, June seven, July 16 and August 72.

Dengue mosquito larvae breed in clear, standing water, while those of malaria thrive even in dirty water. Cases of vector-borne diseases are usually reported between July and November, but the period may stretch till mid-December.