LAHORE   -  Eighteen new dengue virus cases were reported in the provincial metropolis on Monday. According to the Health department sources, besides the dengue virus cases, 1,561 larvae spots were reported in the last 24 hours, with many patients under treatment in different hospitals of the city. Various squads conducted surveil­lance at indoor and outdoor places to detect dengue lar­vae during the last 24 hours. The anti-dengue squad de­stroyed dengue larvae at 1,561 places in the province during continuing surveil­lance. Sources said that on Monday, 18 patients of den­gue fever were reported in Lahore and the number of dengue patients in the me­tropolis has risen to 322 so far this year. Moreover, 2,678 beds have been allocated for dengue patients in hospitals across Punjab, the Health Department said. It may be mentioned here that Deputy Commissioner (DC) Lahore Rafia Haider, Additional Deputy Commissioners, and Assistant Commissioners are continuously paying sur­prise visits to check the per­formance of dengue teams working on the ground, in the wake of increasing den­gue cases after rains. The DC reviewed the performance of dengue teams in Allama Iqbal, Shalimar and Cantt areas, on Monday. Checking of more than 5,000 places would be ensured on daily basis, she said. Meanwhile, in a statement issued recently, Ms. Haider announced that the number of dengue sur­veillance could be increased, keeping in mind the rain alerts of the Meteorological department. Issuing direc­tions for controlling dengue, she warned all town officers to surely complete the set targets on a daily basis. She vowed to monitor various hotspots areas in the city with swift and strict surveil­lance, urging citizens to not let water accumulate in their homes and surroundings. Meanwhile, the anti-dengue drive, initiated by the district administration, is in full swing under which surveillance is being carried out at various points in the provincial capi­tal. Lahore Deputy Commis­sioner Rafia Haider visited Union Council (UC) 23 Shad­bagh area on Monday, where she inspected anti-dengue arrangements and instructed house owners about dengue preventive measures.