KOCHI: While the district-level rodent control programme has already been completed in ten panchayats, the corporation and the municipalities are lagging behind. Of the 11 municipalities, only two has even placed orders for the pesticide. Meanwhile, the corporation is yet to decide on the pesticide to be used for the rodent-control programme.“A total of 17 panchayats have placed orders and we have completed distribution in ten. The remaining seven will be completed in the next two days. Only two municipalities have placed orders with us. The corporation has not placed any orders at all. Under the NRHM, all the wards can purchase the pesticide. These funds are getting lapsed year after year,” said Unnikrishnan, senior assistant, Kerala State Warehouse Corporation.Under the Central Government-sponsored NRHM, each ward, whether it is in the panchayat, municipality or corporation, is allotted Rs 20,000. “The panchayats are making use of the funds provided by the sanitation committee of the NRHM. Only 48 per cent of these funds have been used last year. The remaining is now being used for the rodent-control programme,” Ernakulam district panchayat president Eldose Kunnappally said. Under the programme, the workers of NRHM’s ASHA, Anganwadi, the Kudumbasree and the Health Department will go to each house and provide 50 gm of rat pesticide. “Each packet can be divided into five parts and kept separately. The pesticide is recommended because of its safety quotient. Even if some other organism eats it, that won’t be harmful. There are a total of 1,812 wards in the district that has to be covered,” says NRHM District Officer K V Beena. The corporation officials said procedural problems are delaying the launch of the project in the corporation. “We have started working on the project for the rodent-control programme. The pesticide has to be first approved by the health standing committee of the corporation. Then it has to go to the council. These procedures are contributing to the delay,” Mayor Tony Chammany said.Meanwhile, the health Standing committee is in two minds about the pesticide. “The problem of rat fever is not so prevalent within the corporation limits. Moreover the pesticide which is given by the warehouse is something we have been already been using. We are trying to get the ‘biscuit’ which is more effective. But if any councillor wants to place orders for the powder pesticide, they can do it with their own funds. Moreover the powder pesticides are available for those who demand it,” health standing committee chairman T K Ashraf said.
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