Deprecated (16384): The ArrayAccess methods will be removed in 4.0.0.Use getParam(), getData() and getQuery() instead. - /home/brlfuser/public_html/src/Controller/ArtileDetailController.php, line: 150
 You can disable deprecation warnings by setting `Error.errorLevel` to `E_ALL & ~E_USER_DEPRECATED` in your config/app.php. [CORE/src/Core/functions.php, line 311]
Deprecated (16384): The ArrayAccess methods will be removed in 4.0.0.Use getParam(), getData() and getQuery() instead. - /home/brlfuser/public_html/src/Controller/ArtileDetailController.php, line: 151
 You can disable deprecation warnings by setting `Error.errorLevel` to `E_ALL & ~E_USER_DEPRECATED` in your config/app.php. [CORE/src/Core/functions.php, line 311]
Warning (512): Unable to emit headers. Headers sent in file=/home/brlfuser/public_html/vendor/cakephp/cakephp/src/Error/Debugger.php line=853 [CORE/src/Http/ResponseEmitter.php, line 48]
Warning (2): Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /home/brlfuser/public_html/vendor/cakephp/cakephp/src/Error/Debugger.php:853) [CORE/src/Http/ResponseEmitter.php, line 148]
Warning (2): Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /home/brlfuser/public_html/vendor/cakephp/cakephp/src/Error/Debugger.php:853) [CORE/src/Http/ResponseEmitter.php, line 181]
LATEST NEWS UPDATES | Mobile app to be drafted into battle against mosquitoes in Chennai -Saradha Mohankumar & Divya Chandrababu

Mobile app to be drafted into battle against mosquitoes in Chennai -Saradha Mohankumar & Divya Chandrababu

Share this article Share this article
published Published on Apr 26, 2014   modified Modified on Apr 26, 2014
-The Times of India

 

CHENNAI: When traditional methods of using chemical pesticides, fogging and releasing Gambusia fish into water bodies fail to do enough to control mosquito menace, a little out-of-the-box thinking is required. Digital interventions are beginning to take over to help grapple with vector-borne diseases. The city corporation's health department is working on an app to monitor the fieldwork of 5,000 workers who visit households to eliminate mosquito breeding sources.

"Though we work regularly, we don't have a record of what actually happens on the ground and technology can take care of that," said a corporation official. "CMDA had developed such an app for its field workers but it is for tablets. We want to replicate it for mobile platforms. We want the app to have a database of residents and checklist of breeding sources such as wells so that work to be done can be tracked."

Earlier this month, a pilot project was announced in Mumbai where the Singapore-based designers of a mobile app named X-dengue were to design a prototype for Mumbai. The app sends users text and email alerts if there are a cluster of dengue cases near their homes, schools or workplaces.

For Chennaiites, it doesn't matter how it is done, they just want mosquitoes gone. "For one and a half years, no corporation worker has come here to clear garbage," said Ashok Modi, a resident of Sowcarpet.

"Drains have been clogged for months and sewage stagnates on our roads," said Nolambur resident Shivakumar Anirudha. "Children are prone to a lot of infections due of this."

There has been a dip in malaria cases this year from previous years, say corporation officials. "Water hyacinth is being removed from waterways and five lakh mosquito nets have been distributed to slums," a corporation official said.

Three out of four people are at risk of malaria as per WHO's vector disease report on the southeast Asia region. India is expected to decrease malaria case incidence by 50%-75% by 2015, according to WHO.


The Times of India, 26 April, 2014, http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/tech/tech-news/Mobile-app-to-be-drafted-into-battle-against-mosquitoes-in-Chennai/articleshow/34213853.cms


Related Articles

 

Write Comments

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

*

Video Archives

Archives

share on Facebook
Twitter
RSS
Feedback
Read Later

Contact Form

Please enter security code
      Close