Around 80 organisations governing thermal power plants, dams, industrial estates and plants, waterways, coal fields and mines lack malaria control programmes. They do, however, significantly damage local ecology, which contributes to outbreaks and epidemics. Those few organisations that have malaria programmes are independent of the national malaria programme. There is no shared vision when it comes to control malaria. Malaria can be controlled if the vector population is reduced using simple bioenvironmental interventions and innovations. Reducing transmission alone can reduce the incidence of malaria substantially.

In seven villages of Kheda district, Gujarat, the Malaria Research Centre (MRC) successfully introduced bioenvironmental measures, using larvivorous fish and draining stagnant ponds and ditches. Chemical use diminished during subsequent years as few mosquito-breeding sites remained and very few cases were reported. Unfortunately the project was not sustainable, as people were not provided with the capability to take on the project once funds expired. Malaria re-emerged over the subsequent years, and DDT use was resumed. The same is true for Kolar (Karnataka) and Hassan (Tamil Nadu). The MRC withdrew from the project, as there was little political will to support a grassroots innovation. In the Bharat Heavy Electrical Limited (BHEL) complex in Hardwar, there was more political will and motivation to make the bioenvironmental project a success.

Globally, countries like the Solomon Islands, Indonesia, Malaysia, parts of Somalia and Comoros Islands have successfully used bioenvironmental control methods. In China for example, large rice farms required a lot of standing water, which increased the incidence of malaria. To reduce the extent of standing water, farmers now use just enough water to wet the fields on a regular basis. With no standing water, vectors are unable to breed, leading to a 50 per cent reduction in their numbers.

The DDT story may be repeated again with biopesticides. The most potent biopesticide, Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) has already developed resistance in some mosquito species. Apart from resistance, biopesticides can only be effectively used in clear water bodies, as they lose their potency in dirty sewage and industrial water. This rules out their use in most of India’s stagnant drains and effluent streams.

Other strategies of malaria control include surveillance of vectors, surveillance of susceptible populations, motivating communities to report cases of fevers during malaria seasons, and providing communities with incentives to protect themselves with bednets. Legal instruments to ensure responsibility for control can be taken. Legal action against municipalities and state governments is possible when epidemics occur due to their negligence. Citizens of Ratlam and Bhilwara dragged their respective municipalities to court for neglecting civic amenities. The citizens won the case under the public nuisance act.