Chennai, May 18 (IANS): The Tamil Nadu Health Department has commenced measures on a war footing to prevent the surge in Dengue cases in the state.

The health department is worried as more than 4,000 cases of Dengue fever have been reported even before the onset of monsoon.

The number of Dengue cases is increasing in the Theni, Namakkal, Tiruvannamalai, Ariyalur, Dindigul, Krishnagiri, Madurai, Coimbatore, and Thanjavur districts.

As per statistics, Dengue cases come down in the peak summer months of May and June while they go up in August and September when the rainy season sets in.

The Director of Public Health and Preventive Medicine has issued Dengue control and prevention guidelines and directed the district health officials to conduct an Aedes larval survey and also monitor vector density.

Surveys will be done at village panchayat, town panchayat, municipality, and corporation ward levels to prevent the outbreak of the disease.

The health department is also conducting mass cleaning and chlorination drives to check the breeding of the Aedes mosquitoes.

According to the health department, the state reported 136 cases of Dengue till May 16 this year. In January 2024 there was a huge spike in Dengue cases with the state reporting more than 1,200 cases.

However, compared to 2023, the mortality rate is low this year.

Tamil Nadu reported 8,953 Dengue cases in 2023 with 10 people losing their lives to the disease. However, from 2024 till May, 4,000 cases have been reported with one death being reported in January.