The narrow alleys of the Baiganwadi slum at Govandi are fast becoming an eyesore for the state and civic health departments.
MUMBAI: The narrow alleys of the Baiganwadi slum at Govandi are fast becoming an eyesore for the state and civic health departments. Not only has the area, largely inhabited by a migrant population, reported two confirmed polio cases in two weeks, its drains and water sources are also infested with dengue-carrying aedes aegypti mosquitoes and malarial parasites.
The BMC health department statistics reveal that dengue has caused three deaths - two in September and one in August — in the area. That’s three out of the total 11 dengue deaths in the city this monsoon. And while the area has reported no deaths from malaria in the past two months, there has been a steady flow of people afflicted with the disease.
Health department officials have been hoping the trend will not continue this month. But a visit to the area confirms that it is a ticking bomb. Uncovered drains are choked with garbage, the narrow lanes are filthy, and water storage sites are unclean.
Local resident Zahid Shiekh (34) called the area a hotbed for vector-borne diseases. The engineer said that almost every fourth house in the slum has a family member who has suffered some water-borne illness in the past month.
He blamed the BMC. “Officials hardly pay visits,” he said. “The region has seen no drain cleaning and desilting work after the monsoon. BMC’s road-cleaning efforts are also sporadic.”
But Assistant Municipal Commissioner, M-East, Prakash Patil denied this. “Garbage is removed round the clock and citizens’ complaints are addressed promptly,” he said. He blamed local residents. “The area is situated close to the Mankhurd dumping ground,” he said. “Most locals and rag-pickers sort garbage and lack awareness on community hygiene and cleanliness.”
He said the BMC has stepped up fogging and larvicidal measures in the area as a precaution.
But an officer with the BMC’s insecticide department doubted the efficacy of the renewed cleanliness drive. “The dingy, congested lanes and closely constructed houses make it difficult for staff to move with the shoulder-mounted fogging and anti-larvae machines,” he said.
The officer said the area receives scarce water supply, so residents are in the habit of storing water for more than a week in drums, “an open invitation to mosquitoes”.
BMC Executive Health Officer Jayraj Thanekar echoed the concerns. “Moving about in that area is difficult,” he said. “We are doing our best to reach out to every home there.”
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