A total of 1,269 cases of dengue have been recorded in Delhi this month till December 25.
Six minors, including an eight-month-old boy, have succumbed to dengue in the past two months, taking the total number of fatalities due to the vector-borne disease reported in Delhi this year to 23, according to a report released on Monday by a civic body.
The number of dengue cases has risen to over 9,500 in the city, though about 130 fresh cases have been logged in the last one week, the rise being far less than what was being reported till a few weeks ago.
Till December 18, the official dengue death tally, maintained by the South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC), had stood at 17.
According to the civic body's report on vector-borne diseases released on Monday, a total of 9,545 dengue cases and 23 deaths have been recorded this season till December 25.
These six fatalities being reported now, took place between late October and late November, a senior SDMC official said.
One of the victims, an infant boy, was aged just eight months. A resident of Kirari, he died at CNBC Hospital on November 3, the official said.
Other minors who succumbed to dengue in this period included a 15-year-old boy from Mehrauli, who expired at Rainbow Children Hospital on October 28, while an 8-year-old girl from Dakshinpuri died at AIIMS Hospital on November 5, according to the details shared by SDMC officials.
Three other minors, all boys, aged, 7, 10 and 13 years, succumbed to dengue on October 29, October 21 and November 21, respectively, the official said.
A total of 1,269 cases of dengue have been recorded in Delhi this month till December 25.
In the previous years, the total dengue cases reported were 4,431 (2016), 4,726 (2017), 2,798 (2018), 2,036 (2019) and 1,072 (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.
The national capital 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 to 2020, had stood at -- 2 (in 2019); 4 (2018); 10 (2017); and 10 (2016), according to the official tally maintained by SDMC. On November 17, the city had recorded 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.
A total of 1,072 cases and one death were logged in the entire year in 2020, according to the report by SDMC, the nodal agency for tabulating data on vector-borne diseases in the city.
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 (0), February (2), March (5), April (10) and May (12), June (7), July (16), August (72), September (217) and October (1196), according to the report.
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.