Sylhet residents endure relentless mosquito invasion amid dengue surge

SYLHET, Dec 06 (UNB): Residents across Sylhet City Corporation (SCC) are struggling with an unrelenting mosquito infestation, facing bites day and night with little respite even inside their homes.

The worsening situation has reignited concerns over a potential spike in dengue cases during the winter months.

Despite SCC spending crores of taka every year on mosquito-control programmes, residents say the efforts have produced no visible improvement, prompting serious questions about the effectiveness of the city authority. According to SCC data, Tk 22.59 million (2.26 crore) was allocated for mosquito eradication in the fiscal year 2025-26 - the same amount spent in the previous fiscal year. The funds were used to purchase 4,000 litres of larvicide (Temephos 50 EC) and 25,000 litres of adulticide (Malathion 57 EC) from the Bangladesh Machine Tools Factory. Yet residents insist the services remain grossly inadequate.

Many complain that fogging machines appear on the streets only occasionally - sometimes just once or twice a year - leaving several neighbourhoods completely untouched.

The organisation does not have a permanent mosquito-control workforce and instead relies on daily wage earners hired seasonally.

While officials maintain that 30-40 workers are deployed regularly, citizens argue that the efforts make little difference.

As the mosquito menace intensifies, dengue infections are also creeping up in Sylhet.

Two people have died of dengue this year, and new cases are being reported every day.

Although SCC claims most of the infected patients are from outside the city, anxiety among residents is rising.