The deaths of Versova residents Rehab and Rameez Chougule on Thursday due to aluminium phosphide poisoning has brought the issue of pest control safety to the fore.
The deaths of Versova residents Rehab and Rameez Chougule on Thursday due to aluminium phosphide poisoning has brought the issue of pest control safety to the fore. The Chougules had done pest control in their apartment and had apparently neglected to air out the room. Aluminium phosphide is a highly poisonous fumigant that is used on grains and according to experts shouldn’t have been used inside the apartment.
Jayant Dandawate, vice president of operations and technical at Pest Control India (PCI) says, “According to the rules set by the government in the National Standards on Phytosanitation Measures you are not allowed to use aluminium phosphide in residential areas or in closed environments”. The storage and usage of this chemical too needs special accreditation from the Directorate of Plant Protection Quarantine and Storage under the Ministry of Agriculture. “People who use this fumigant have to be specially trained and taught to use the equipments,” he adds.
Priya Sule, assistant general manager of HR at PCI says that though the government has rules to regulate the use of such chemicals, there are many unregulated pest control service providers who offer their services without having proper accreditations or training. “In India, when it comes to pest control, people tend to go for the cheapest option which can be problematic,” she said. She added that licensed pest control companies don’t use such strong chemicals inside residences — most of the chemicals used are not harmful to human beings. “If you have a cockroach infestation for example we use a gel-based treatment which is harmful only to cockroaches. If we do have to use strong chemicals, we ensure the customer knows the safety measures that they have to follow.”
Rehab and Rameez died due to cerebro-pulmonary edema, a condition where the lungs fill with liquid restricting oxygen flow in the body causing the victim to die. Dr KC Mohanty, HoD of chest medicine at KJ Somaiya hospital said that the chemicals used for pest control can contain harmful petroleum based products apart from heavy metals and sulphur which can cause a pulmonary edema.
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