Overview
- The union health minister chaired a high-level review on Thursday, June 18, 2026, and directed states, union territories and local bodies to activate district-level response plans for mosquito-borne diseases.
- Authorities asked hospitals to secure stocks of medicines, diagnostic kits, blood components, beds and trained staff to ensure uninterrupted care if caseloads rise.
- States were told to sharpen surveillance, map local hotspots, run anti-larval drives and ramp up targeted vector-control actions such as fogging and source reduction.
- The government highlighted an early-season rise of about 5,000 dengue cases so far in 2026 and urged community groups, schools and panchayats to join information and prevention campaigns.
- The push builds on a decade of gains against malaria, with cases and deaths down nearly 80% from 2015–2025, and signals a shift from control to early, locally focused prevention to avoid seasonal surges.