Monday, December 6, 2010

Malaria myth NMMC wants people to believe!

Malaria myth NMMC wants people to believe!
The awareness programmes carried out by NMMC to control vector-borne diseases like malaria seems to be limited only to publicity. In reality, choked and overflowing sewage drains are providing ideal grounds for such diseases to flourish.
NMMC pumps in millions of rupees to combat mosquito-borne disease, mostly through publicity media. Assistant Municipal Commissioner Babashaheb Rajale said, "To control mosquito borne disease fogging and spraying is done each week in each society. Blood samples of 100 households are also collected from the surrounding of one victim of malaria. Employees of NMMC health department collect data of malaria cases from government as well as private hospitals, clinics and laboratories and accordingly action is taken".
Leave aside the official version because residents of JN - 3 - 16, Sector-3 of Vashi has to say. Sobha Joshi Patil informs "Almost all the sewage drains of Vashi are in a dilapidated condition. As they were made more than 30 years back, their capacity on the basis of population is too low to meet the present day requirement. In our society the sewage water mostly overflows early morning. Due to this mess none of the women are able to come out and meet up. Neither can we let our children play in such unhygienic conditions".
She further adds, "For the past six to seven months there is no proper fogging or spraying being done by NMMC to control mosquito menace and other germs due to sewage water. Since a couple of weeks our neighbour, Vinod Pradhan is suffering from malaria and not a single representative of NMMC has till date visited him".
It may be recalled that last year itself NMMC had passed a resolution on changing or repairing the drains in internal part of societies from its own funds. No wonder the funds are being received as grant under Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission. In a few societies the works have also been initiated but people are not satisfied as their early morning mess problem has not been solved.

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