GHMC picks new fogging method to swat mosquito menace in city

Hyderabad: In response to increasing mosquito menace, the entomology wing of the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation has ramped up its efforts with an innovative approach to fogging operations throughout the city.

This innovative approach, referred to as cool fogging, utilises a water-based insecticide, offering a safer and more effective alternative to traditional thermal fogging that relies on fuel.

By adopting the advanced method, the GHMC aims to significantly curb the spread of mosquitoes and diseases they carry, ensuring a healthier environment for residents. The method is under observation and as part of a pilot programme initiated in the Khairatabad zone, with plans for expansion across the city.

The entomology officers said “the method of fogging uses a water-based insecticide, Deltamethrin, instead of Malathion, used in thermal fogging. This odourless chemical does not require petrol and diesel for mixing chemical, which makes it harmless.”

GHMC Commissioner Amrapali Kata, who inspected the fogging operation, said, “With the third generation of cool fogging, all mosquitoes died within half an hour, while in thermal fogging they don’t die, they just go away. This water-based chemical fogging is so effective in curbing the mosquito menace’.

She said “The thermal spraying of chemicals along with diesel emits fog and smell, which is harmful and dangerous, especially for children, infants, and the elderly."

For a healthier environment for all residents, we were on to other solutions to curb mosquitoes; we decided to use this water-based third-generation chemical, which is already being used in Gujarat and other States,” she added. This is a proven chemical spray, approved by the World Health Organisation, cost-effective and eco-friendly, and it eradicates mosquitoes effectively.”