England shops for protective gear to battle dengue

LONDON - The chef de mission of the England’s Commonwealth squad, Craig Hunter is on a shopping spree in Delhi for 560 pairs of trousers and long-sleeved tops to protect his athletes and officials from dengue during the Commonwealth Games.

The dengue outbreak has resulted in five deaths in the Indian capital and 2,085 cases have been reported till Thursday.

Since there is no cure for the mosquito-borne disease, the only way to tackle it is by prevention, and Hunter is doing just that by last-minute shopping for protective clothing.

“Everyone has a pair of tracksuit bottoms and a long-sleeved top in their kit but when you are out here for three or four weeks you need a change of clothing,” said Hunter.

“Having given them medical advice about covering up, it is only right that we provide them with the right clothes. I am now looking at whether we can buy them off the peg or whether we need to get them manufactured,” Hunter was quoted as saying by The Telegraph.

The deadly disease when contracted has symptoms like high fever for four to five days, severe headaches, pain in the eyes and aching muscles and joints.

The rise in the number of dengue cases can be attributed to the unusual rains in Delhi at this time of the year, turning open spaces and construction sites into a breeding ground for the mosquitoes.

Hunter is part of an advanced party of English officials in Delhi, who have come for an assessment of the security situation and the state of the Games Village for the strong 560-member squad due to arrive by Sep 23.

Meanwhile, the Games Organising Committee officials are taking precautions by fogging the Village with insecticides twice a day and carrying out anti-larvae treatment.

–Indo–Asian News Service