The Health Ministry has declared a special National Dengue Prevention Week from November 9 to 14, covering 74 high-risk Medical Officer of Health (MOH) divisions across the country.
The campaign was originally scheduled for November 2 to 7 but was postponed because of adverse weather, the Daily Mirror reported.
The ministry said the programme was organised in response to changing weather conditions, rising dengue risk indicators and patterns observed during previous outbreaks.
What the week involves
Over the six days, joint inspection teams will be deployed to find and destroy mosquito breeding sites, with particular attention to unoccupied premises — a persistent source of standing water that routine household inspections miss.
Special cleaning programmes will also run at schools, Pirivenas, universities and religious places. Activities will be coordinated through the relevant MOH offices, and a dedicated operations room will track progress daily.
The programme is led by the National Dengue Control Unit, with support from the Ministry of Public Administration, Provincial Councils and Local Government, the Clean Sri Lanka Secretariat, Sri Lanka Police, the Tri-Forces and voluntary organisations.
Acting Director of the National Dengue Control Unit Dr. Kapila Kannangara said the unit was continuously monitoring mosquito indicators and reported case numbers in order to head off a possible outbreak.
Why the timing matters
The postponement and the campaign are driven by the same weather. Heavy rain across the southwest in the past week — including flash flooding in Colombo on Friday and minor flood conditions in the Nilwala Ganga on Sunday — leaves behind exactly the small pockets of standing water in which Aedes mosquitoes breed. Dengue case numbers characteristically rise several weeks after sustained rainfall, which is the window the ministry is trying to get ahead of.
The ministry has not published the list of the 74 divisions, the current case count, or a target for inspections.
Note: the number of divisions covered varies between campaigns — an earlier special dengue control week covered 62 MOH areas. This article refers specifically to the November 9–14, 2026 programme in 74 divisions.
