July has seen almost a three-fold rise in malaria cases in the city compared to the corresponding period last year.
According to the data available with the local civic body, in July alone, 12,000 people tested positive from the 1 lakh slides taken in house-to-house surveys. Last year, during the same period, there were 4,380 positive cases.
Altogether 33% of the positive cases are reported from Sewri, Mahalaxmi, Byculla, Chembur and Ghatkopar, while 25 per cent cases are from Reay Road, Mahim Causeway, Dharavi, Santacruz and Vikhroli areas.
"Every year, we test about 50,000 blood smear slides per month. This July, we have already tested one lakh. Besides construction activity, the heavy downpour this month is also a reason for the surge in malaria cases," additional municipal commissioner Manisha Mhaiskar said.
July has been one of the wettest months in five years and this has led to an increased incidence of monsoon-related ailments, Mhaiskar said.
Dr Hemant Thacker, who consults in Bhatia, Breach Candy, Jaslok and Saifee hospitals, said, "Private hospitals seem to have no vacant beds for new arrivals. Patients are just pouring in. The problem is that with hospitals full of people suffering from monsoon diseases, there is no space left for those suffering from other ailments."
"We have a total of 52 beds, which are all full. Almost 70 per cent of our patients have either fever or malaria," Sanjivani nursing home's Dr Vanita Ingle said.
"Every day we get 90 to 120 patients with fever of which 20 to 30 per cent test positive for malaria. We have special arrangements during the monsoon but this time the number of cases is higher," dean of Nair Hospital, Dr RV Rananavare said.
According to a civic official, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has taken several measures to tackle the ever increasing flow of patients coming with suspected malaria including extra beds, special OPDs, door-to-door screening of patients in malaria-prone areas and slums.
Mumbai has about 2,500 construction sites where 2.5 lakh workers are employed.
"Controlling the breeding of mosquitoes at construction sites is a serious concern. We will issue health cards to all these workers from the next week, so that we can keep track of them. Basically they are in small groups and always on the move," Mhaiskar said.
Cracking the whip on housing societies, the BMC has initiated legal action against them if they fail to curb the malaria menace.
"In the last 15 days, the BMC has initiated legal proceedings against 26 societies after mosquito-breeding sites were found on their premises. They had not complied with guidelines despite notices. The offence carries a penalty of Rs 10,000," BMC, chief insecticide officer, Dr Arun Bamne said.
"We have done this to ensure that residents do their best to keep the surroundings mosquito-free," Bamne said.
Earlier this month, about 560 private premises had been issued notices, Bamne said, adding, "Teams are surveying private premises to check whether the overhead tanks are leaking, are not closed properly and if compounds and terraces have water accumulated, which encourage the breeding of larvae."
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