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SINGAPORE : In what's believed to be the first such case this year, the National Environment Agency (NEA) will haul a man to court for allegedly breeding mosquitoes.
He is the owner of a commercial fishing pond in Pasir Ris.
Pasir Ris Drive 6 has become the number one dengue hotspot in Singapore, with close to 40 new cases as of Wednesday.
The NEA believes a pumping station at a commercial fishing pond there is the main culprit.
NEA officers found over 600 mosquito larvae there.
But they pointed out that they did not find mosquito larvae at the same site during their earlier checks.
"This pumping station happens to be en route for residents going to the MRT station. Though we have destroyed the breedings, we believe some of the mosquitoes may have found their way into the nearby homes," said Silachart Lau, GM of Northeast Regional Office, NEA.
If found guilty, the owner of the fishing pond could be fined a maximum of S$5,000 or face a jail term of up to three months, or both.
NEA said the cluster at Pasir Ris Drive 6 stands out for the large number of outdoor breeding grounds found.
It has alerted all relevant partners, but more needs to be done as officers found more mosquito larvae in the drains outside a nearby HDB after rounds of mass combing exercises. - CNA /ls
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