Chief Minister, Arvind Kejriwal’s weekly call to residents to check for mosquito breeding in containers is a good idea. There is no denying that if people were to involve themselves in such an activity on a weekly basis this problem would be reduced. The Aedes mosquito breeds in fresh water and is largely a container breeder. A large number of Celebrities and Journalists too, have endorsed the community engagement programme of the CM and the Hon’ble Lt. Governor of Delhi tweeted his own participation publicly.
A community initiative always leverages the work of civic agencies positively and can multiply the reach and effectiveness of civic initiatives given that the staff and wherewithal within the Government is at a perennial shortage in comparison with the population and the scale of the problem
I too met with the Hon’ble CM and we have, and continue to participate in this initiative through the voluntary groups and organisations that I engage with
I too met with the Hon’ble CM and we have, and continue to participate in this initiative through the voluntary groups and organisations that I engage with
But I must in all honesty also place my misgivings on such initiatives if they are not backed, or in tandem with proper official support of the government/municipal machinery which is, as per the Municipal Act meant to take care of anti malarial work as they alone are legally empowered to use the necessary chemicals and pesticides and or take coercive and punitive action as required
I say this because I have in my direct experience working with the RWA of Delhi for nearly a decade seen community engagement initiatives rather weak and ineffective in bringing about civic sense or legal compliance. Other leaders too have tried but except for religious functions where some divine benefits can be acquired residents of Delhi have shown little interest in getting together for community work. Possibly from cynicism as the public does not see any ‘follow through’ govt action.
Many leaders with great political and/or religious sway have tried initiatives on cleanliness, Waste burning, Illegal occupation of footpaths, Segregation of waste, composting of garden waste and kitchen waste, traffic rules, single use plastic but many other such community engagement based programmes have failed . Which is why, even as we keep trying, this is a slow moving method to get things going. We must not also forget that this is a low Aedes breeding cycle year. Dengue is cyclical and the intensity is not the same every year. This is a weak intensity year and may well give us a false positive of the CM’s well meaning initiative
I therefore request the CM Consider the following
- Strengthen the Governance as well as the political representative (MLA/MC) response around this. People do actually respond when they see their local Councillor/MLA genuinely push for civic issues. And this one ( unlike encroachments and illegal construction) has no negative political implications
- Support funds for the actual DBCs that go house to house every year. If this poses an administrative/political problem, the Delhi Govt can hire a suitable number of Interns and attach them to MLAs and use LAD funds for payment. The interns then assist the RWA. This will encourage the involvement of youth in community work which is currently limited to Senior citizens within RWA
- The use of larvicides and anti malarial drugs is regulated under law and the RWA cannot carry out spraying etc. We were told this by the NVBDCP. The GNCTD can em panel certified pest control companies and allow RWA to seek their services which the Govt can pay for
There are many other such ideas but the core propeller of such programs is a serious and legally sanctioned partnership between authorized Govt departments and accountable public groups like RWA or public engagement NGOs. Generally exhorting the public alone, is not sustainable.
While I welcome the intention of the Chief Minister, I would like to see him do more on providing structural direction so that the Governance mechanism is strengthened for community engagement.
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