Over 80 cases of malaria have been reported in Delhi this year so far, more than double the number of people affected by dengue, a municipal report released on 29th July showed.

About 39 of these malaria cases have been recorded in July. According to the report, till July 27 this year, 34 cases of dengue have been reported -- 12 in July, 11 in June, three in May, two in April, four in March and one each in February and January. Last year, 2,798 dengue cases and four deaths were recorded by the South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC), which tabulates the data on vector-borne diseases in the city. Cases of vector-borne diseases are usually reported between July and November but the period may stretch to mid-December.

Also, of the 83 cases of malaria, 35 were recorded in June, eight in May and one in April. And 19 cases of chikungunya nine in July, five in June, two in February and one each in March, April and May have been recorded. The dengue victims last year included a minor boy. Three of the victims were identified as Aman Tiwari (13), Sanskriti (21) and Gagan (23). Doctors have advised people to take precautions and urged them to wear full-sleeves and use mosquito nets. Water coolers should be dried up when not in use as mosquitoes carrying the dengue virus usually breed there, a doctor said.

Civic bodies had also organised a workshop recently on prevention of vector-borne diseases. Mosquito-breeding has been reported in at least 48,039 households and 46,580 legal notices have been issued this year. Of the total number of dengue cases last year, 141 were recorded in December, while 1,062 in November, 1,114 in October, 374 in September, 58 in August, 19 in July, eight in June, 10 in May, two in April, one in March, three in February and six in January.

The rest of the cases were reported from areas outside the jurisdiction of the three municipal corporations of Delhi. Also, 473 cases of malaria and 165 cases of chikungunya were reported last year. According to the SDMC, 10 people died due to dengue in Delhi in 2017, of whom five were not residents of the national capital. Overall, the vector-borne disease had affected 9,271 people in the city in 2017.