High birth rate of rats obstructing prevention of leptospirosis cases in Mumbai

The high birth rate of rats is one of the reasons why the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is finding it difficult to prevent leptospirosis cases in the city. The civic body claims that biologically, rats can increase their family trees upto 15,000 members a year.

The civic administration says that destroying rodents is one of the solutions to check cases of leptospirosis. It has even suggested that, in order to avoid the rat menace, people should starve rats and kill them. The rodents are the known carriers of various diseases, including leptospirosis, plague and can affect the health of people.

Cases of deaths due leptospirosis during the monsoon is reported in the city almost every year. Leptospirosis is transmitted from animals to human and rats are one of the animals that mostly carried this disease to humans.

The civic body claimed that it had already killed a total 2,11,705 rats in the first six months this year. 

Maximum number of rats were killed in the Chembur area while South Mumbai also saw killing of large number of rats. Last year, the BMC had killed over 2.48 lakh rats. "The number shows that little furry creatures has been growing at very fast rate.

The BMC has suggested a number of ways to keep rats at bay. It calls this the four D formula. The formula includes deny entry, deny shelter, deny food and destroy them.