Sindh, Balochistan get biological insecticide made by DESTO

ISLAMABAD: Fearing a large number of deaths due to malaria, dengue fever and other vector-borne diseases in the flood-hit areas, Sindh and Balochistan governments have procured several hundred kilograms of a ‘biological insecticide’ developed by a science and technology organisation of the military to eliminate mosquitoes and their larvae, federal health officials Wednesday said.

“Provincial governments of Sindh and Balochistan have procured several hundred kilograms of biological pesticide ‘Moskill’ developed by the Defence Science and Technology Organization (Desto), which is successfully being used by the armed forces units to eliminate mosquitoes in and around their establishments”, an official of the National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination (NHS,R&C) told The News on Wednesday.

World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that widespread outbreaks of Malaria and other vector-borne diseases in 32 flood-hit areas of Sindh and Balochistan threaten thousands of lives, fearing that over 2.7 million people in these districts could contract Malaria in these areas by January 2023, of which many could die if not treated. The NHS official said the two provinces have decided to apply the biological pesticide ‘Moskill’ on an experimental basis to prevent deaths, and officials of both governments have been trained by the army officials regarding the use of biological chemical containing ‘Bacillus thuringeinsis’, which is a proven larvicidal bacterium, found naturally in the soil.

“Bacillus thuringeinsis is a naturally occurring soil bacteria and it is successfully being used by the United States, Canada, China, India and various other countries in Europe and Africa. Desto has indigenously developed its Bacillus thuringeinsis-based product Bti-Pk from bacteria obtained from local strains of Pakistan. This product kills mosquito larvae in the stagnant waters and stops the growth and spread of all kinds of mosquitoes”, the official added. According to the official, Moskill is an environment-friendly product which is approved by the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) but added that both the provincial governments were using this product on experimental basis as they had not used this kind of method before for the vector control.

On the other hand, a former healthcare professional associated with the Pakistan army said the British Indian Army had a long experience of dealing with mosquitoes, especially those that spread malaria, and added that in some wars, malaria had killed more troops than the enemy, compelling the army to come up with ways and means to deal with vector-borne diseases. “Malaria and dengue pose a serious public health challenge for the armed forces like civilian populations. Pakistan Army is using traditional as well as research-based ways and techniques including biotechnological based solutions to deal with mosquitos and other vector-borne diseases to prevent soldiers and their families settled in the cantonment areas”, he added.