VIJAYAWADA: Vijayawada Municipal Corporation (VMC) has recently installed ‘Mosquito Devices’ on a pilot basis in 10 localities in the city that are prone to vector-borne diseases. The devices will attract and kill the mosquitoes around 250 metres of its radius with its fragrant-but-poisonous liquid. The species and nature of the dead mosquitoes will be examined by VMC staff and steps needed to combat the menace will be formulated accordingly.
The devices, that are based on Internet of Things (IoT) technology, is part of US-based firm Moskeet’s sharing of ‘Smart Mosquito Control Management’ technology with the civic body. VMC in-charge biologist A Sridhar said that a team of officials recently conducted a survey across the 59 divisions of the city to identify the density of mosquitoes and steps needed to combat the menace through installation of ‘Mosquito Devices’.
“Officials have identified ten localities where mosquito population is high. They are Vambay Colony (Block no. 118 and C block), VMC Elementary School (HB Colony), Rajiv Nagar, Bramarambapuram, Bhavanipuram, HB Colony water tank, KL Rao Nagar pump house, Rani Gari Thota and Urban Health Care Centre, Krishna Lanka,” he said.
Describing the functioning of the ‘Mosquito Devices’, Sridhar said that the IoT-based devices will operate with support of Global Positioning System (GPS) and will be linked to a central database.
“A fragrant liquid in the device will attract and kill the mosquitoes within 250 metres radius. The technology will help detect vectors and give a count of the mosquitoes. The data will be uploaded to Moskeet’s database and to VMC’s Command Control Room. The monitoring of mosquitoes will help the department identify the patterns and give a better understanding of mosquito population dynamics,” Sridhar added.
The biologist said that the severity of the mosquito menace will be decided based on the number of mosquitoes found in the devices.
“If less than 50 mosquitoes are found, then the locality is in ‘yellow’ category or safe. If the number is between 75 and 100, then the locality is in ‘orange’ category or alarming and if the number of mosquitoes is 100 or more then the locality is in ‘red’ category or dangerous,” he added.
The mosquito density maps will help government prioritise sprays, according to VMC officials. The State had sanctioned Rs 1.55 crore for fighting mosquito menace in 2017.