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Interiors can wait, make your home safe first in Mumbai

They say there is no place like home; it gives us comfort and sanctuary. But as we focus on choosing the right colour for the walls and designer furniture for the living room, we often tend to overlook safety.

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They say there is no place like home; it gives us comfort and sanctuary. But as we focus on choosing the right colour for the walls and designer furniture for the living room, we often tend to overlook safety.

Bank employee Sujata Shetty learnt how to make her two-bedroom Powai apartment safe the hard way. One morning, as she stepped onto the ‘dry space’ — an extension outside the kitchen — to retrieve some towels hanging out to dry, she slipped.

“I clutched the metal grills for support. To my horror, the rusted metal gave way and I was teetering on the edge looking down six floors,” the 44-year-old recalls.

With a combination of luck and presence of mind, she managed to regain her balance and scramble back to safety. However, other people in similar circumstances have not been as fortunate.

A few months ago, a collegian died after she fell from the balcony of her 11th-floor flat in Gamdevi and a 72-year-old met a similar fate after he fell from the balcony of his home on the 16th floor in Shivaji Park. Recently, an 82-year-old died after he fell from the balcony of his fourth floor apartment in Churchgate. None of the houses in question had protective grills on the balcony.

A little thought and planning can go a long way in ensuring that our homes are safe and secure. “A few precautionary measures and vigilance on part of family members can prevent accidents, or at least minimise their impact,” says Raisa Nuzhat, an interior designer and home safety consultant. She suggests checking regularly for rusted railings and grills on doors and windows and watching out for crumbling plaster on damp walls and ceilings.

Experts in the field say accidents such as electrical or cooking gas fire are also common in Mumbai homes but can be avoided.

“Simple steps like ensuring proper insulation and wiring, and changing rubber tubings on gas outlets regularly, will keep homes safer. Any electrical malfunction should be dealt with immediately,” says Ramakant Sharma, an Andheri-based electrician who works at highrises in the western suburbs.

Another concern is that of keeping burglars and intruders away. “A simple yet effective solution is to have a good peephole and door-safety chain.

And if you can afford it, I would recommend a wireless video doorbell, which allows you to take a look at the visitor from a monitor inside your house,” says Neeta Makwana, a Mazagaon-based homemaker who recently raised an alarm and scared off a man who had tried to enter her flat posing as a courier delivery person.

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