In the last couple of months Goa has seen an alarming rise in the number of dengue fever cases. But it is not just dengue that people are affected with, many people are also being treated for malaria vivax and malaria falciparum. Besides cleanliness, one of the main reasons for the spread of vector borne diseases is indiscriminate cutting down of trees and hills to make way for housing projects.
Trees prevent the proliferation of mosquitoes by stopping the breeding of the vector. The neem tree is a strong mosquito repellant. Due to its mosquito repellant properties it is used in balms and mosquito repellants. Native to Southeast Asia and India, the neem tree is an ornamental shade tree with pesticidal properties. It has a low mammalian toxicity level and is believed to affect more than 60 insects, according to the University of Connecticut’s Integrated Pest Management.
The neem tree contains insecticidal substances in all its parts, but the seeds contain the greatest concentration. Azadirachin in the neem tree deters mosquitoes against feeding on it and disrupts their normal growth. Neem products reportedly work by intervening at several stages of an insect’s life. The ingredients from this tree approximate the shape and structure of hormones vital to the lives of insects.
The bodies of these insects absorb the neem compounds as if they were the real hormones, but this only blocks their endocrine systems. The resulting behavioral and physiological aberrations leave the insects so confused in the brain and body that they cannot reproduce and their populations plummet.
Goa has been experiencing outbreaks of vector borne disease almost at the onset of every monsoon. Some years back there was an outbreak of chikungunya. There are several cases of malaria every year. As a long time strategy to tackle the menace of vector borne disease, the government should grow a large number of neem trees instead of growing other ornamental trees. Neem trees also provide shade but most importantly prevent the breeding of mosquitoes in an area of 100 meters around it. People should also be encouraged to grow neem plants in their compounds or as potted plants.
