Ahmedabad: While rain has been sparse in the city, cloudy weather has created a conducive environment for dengue-carrying Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, whose breeding is generally driven by alternating periods of rainfall and heat.This year, such cycles have been few, experts said, even as cases have started trickling in.According to health department figures, till Aug 16, 48 cases of malaria and 68 cases of dengue were reported.For the entirety of Aug in 2025, the figures were 223 and 428. Though cases are few this year, the monsoon is yet to conclude.Dr Amit Prajapati, a critical care specialist with Shalby Hospital, said that cases of vector-borne diseases are relatively higher in the stretch between SG Highway and SP Ring Road.“Open fields and construction sites serve as breeding sites. This year, hospitalisation has been lower compared to last year,” Prajapati said. “The severity of diseases has not changed much. We have not seen many chikungunya cases this monsoon.”Public health experts said mosquito populations are affected by environmental factors, and for the past several years, dengue cases have been relatively higher than malaria. The experts said the trend can be attributed to the breeding patterns of the carriers.City-based physicians have urged citizens to prevent water accumulation and use ointments to keep mosquitoes away.BOXVector-borne diseases in A’badDisease | 2025 | 2026July | Aug | Jan-Dec| July | Aug| Jan-Aug |Malaria 146 223 915 50 48 223Falciparum malaria 29 58 206 5 6 25Dengue 145 428 1591 68 68 295Chikungunya 4 3 19 1 1 4*till Aug 16; Source: AMC
