Twitter
Advertisement

BMC in a hole, courtesy rat menace

With only 44 night rat killers dealing with lakhs of rodents, complaints are piling up at ward offices

Latest News
article-main
FacebookTwitterWhatsappLinkedin

Civic body's insecticide officer Rajan Naringrekar is a harrowed man these days. With only 44 night rat killers in his team and lakhs of rodents taking over the city, his office is full of nothing but complaints.

Rat menace is not just restricted to domestic nuisance, ie damaging household properties and edibles, rodents are chewing out utility cables, telephone and broadband lines, and damaging footpaths as well as foundations of tall buildings.

Residents are furious that the authorities are taking too long to address their problems. They said they have to make repeated visits to the local ward office and keep requesting them to set the traps. But the traps are no good because civic staffers never clean them out, they added.

Mahim resident Irfan Machiwala said, "We have been following up with complaints at G-south ward. They have only two night rat killers, they cannot cope up with the work load. Despite all our efforts, there is no improvement in our area. Rodents are eating up footpaths, creating burrows in the foundations of buildings, which are already old and pose a danger to our lives."

Absence of sufficient number of night rat killers is making the situation worse, not to mention the pesticides used by the insecticide department seem to be ineffective.

Rat killers are paid Rs5,000 a month, provided they kill at least 30 rats every night. They are also required to 'submit' the carcasses to the ward office concerned. If they fail to achieve the target, they do not get their monthly salary. And if any rat killer exceeds his quota, he receives additional cash award per extra rat.

The usual procedure to kill rodents involves stuffing poison down rat burrows. But this is considered dangerous in residential areas, with there being the chance of it affecting people. Hence, the BMC has turned to killing the rats physically.

Central Mumbai uses the highest amount of rat poison due to the density of human and rodent population and garbage among other things. Rat killers kill 3-4 lakh rats on an average every year.

Find your daily dose of news & explainers in your WhatsApp. Stay updated, Stay informed-  Follow DNA on WhatsApp.
Advertisement

Live tv

Advertisement
Advertisement