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Public Health / Sanitation


Nearly 10 % of state's urban population at risk

Monday, 20 July 2009 08:27 administrator
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Times of India 20.07.2009

Nearly 10 % of state's urban population at risk

JAIPUR: Concern was expressed over the increasing number of sudden deaths by heart failure' at a summit of cardiac specialists held in the city on Sunday. Doctors at the summit said that heart failure has emerged as the largest killer and the syndrome is more frequent among younger people. Changing lifestyle, family history and negligence of initial symptoms were said to be the major reasons for casualties in these cases.

"Nearly 10 % of the urban population in Rajasthan is at risk of cardiac problems, 4 % of the rural population too is at a risk. However, those with a family history of serious heart troubles must be very cautious," said Dr Sanjay Mittal.

He said that awareness should be increased to avoid undue deaths from heart failure. "It has been noticed that regular exercise and balanced lifestyle can reverse the ill effects enabling a person to live a healthy life for a longer span," he added.

The doctors discussed various aspects related to heart failure. "The arteries of Indian people are narrower than those of the people in the West. This combined with excessive use of fatty food has been threatening the cardiac health of the country and India is expected to become the heart disease capital of the world in the coming days," said Dr Balbir Singh, a senior cardiac consultant from New Delhi.

The doctors also expressed their concern over ungoverned and non judicious use of medicines and said that only if a person shows symptoms of hypertension for more than a period of three continuous weeks should he be considered a patient of hypertension and be referred to medication.

 

Fresh PMC move to clean city

Saturday, 18 July 2009 09:45 administrator
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Times of India 18.07.2009

Fresh PMC move to clean city

PATNA: Doing away with its earlier practice of deputing ten additional labourers in each municipal ward in addition to its existing sanitation staff, Patna Municipal Corporation (PMC) has introduced a new method for the ongoing special cleanliness drive.

All the 290 additional labourers of Nutan Rajdhani Circle are being used together in selected places of 29 wards of the circle. "It has given impressive results as with so much of manpower at disposal, the areas, where cleanliness drive has been carried out, wear a completely new look with no garbage visible along the roads," a PMC official said.

He said the new method has helped the corporation deliver desired results without spending extra money as it was using the existing resources only.

The areas which have benefited so far are Bailey Road, Boring Road, Boring Canal Road and Gardanibagh, he said.
 

Garbage heaps visible, but AMC in slumber

Friday, 17 July 2009 12:13 administrator
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The Times of India 17.07.2009
Garbage heaps visible, but AMC in slumber
ALLAHABAD: Due to negligence of the Allahabad Municipal Corporation, piles of garbage strewn have become a routine feature in different localities in the city. People's woes have been compounded as the AMC sanitary staff fails to discharge its duties efficiently. The apathy of civic officials assumes importance since cleanliness is needed in the rainy season owing to the threat of spread of various diseases.

The problem is acute in the Old City which is characterised by dingy lanes, narrow bylanes and clustered houses. Areas like Rani Mandi, Chowk, Mohtashimganj, Bahadurganj, Muthiganj, Colonelganj, Nakhas Kohna, Garhi Sarai, Khuldabad, etc are reeling under sanitation and garbage related problems.

Complaining about the non-cooperative attitude of the sanitary staff, Kusum Kesarwani, resident of Rani Mandi said, "It is not possible to come out of our houses during the day time as piles of garbage can be seen everywhere in our narrow lanes. As the garbage is not lifted, even light rains spell havoc and the stench emanating from it becomes unbearable.''

Alok Agarwal, a resident of Chowk, said, "Though our area is the main commercial hub of the city but AMC has a turned a blind eye to it. Further, as hordes of people throng the commercial establishments, they also spread garbage.''

There is also threat of spread of various diseases in the city on account of non cleaning of drains. The problem is compounded in the area that are Here too AMC apathy is widespread as rarely sanitary staff is seen cleaning the area.
 

MCD to spend Rs 50cr on white, green dustbins

Friday, 17 July 2009 12:07 administrator
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The Times of India 17.07.2009

MCD to spend Rs 50cr on white, green dustbins

NEW DELHI: After spending Rs 12 crore on green and blue dustbins many of which have been reported useless by the sanitation field staff the MCD is all set to purchase white and green dustbins at a cost Rs 50 crore. The civic agency plans to provide two dustbins to every household and ensure door-to-door segregation.

The civic agency plans to begin the project by July 20 in Rohini and Civil Lines zones and extend it to other zones by December. According to MCD, door-to-door segregation will help solve city's solid waste management problem immensely. "Once the project begins, only 25% of the present quantity of waste will find its way to the landfill sites. The rest will either be composted, recycled or used for energy generation,'' said an official.

However, MCD officials admitted that even if the proposed project is in place by the year-end, they will be able to process only 57.22% of the waste. The official added: "We will provide two bins, which will be joined, to each house owner. The green bin will be for biodegradable waste and the white one for recyclable waste. It will cost MCD Rs 50.40 crore to purchase these bins.''

Said a resident of GK-I, Alka Singh: "So much money is spent on bins but you can never find one in market areas. Garbage is always strewn out on the roads. Even if MCD purchases these bins under the door-to-door segregation scheme, what is the guarantee that people will actually use them?''

 

65 city lakes contaminated: Report

Friday, 17 July 2009 06:45 administrator
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Deccan Chronicle 17.07.2009

65 city lakes contaminated: Report

July 17th, 2009
By Our Correspondent
Bengaluru

July 16: Bengaluru, which boasted of several lakes in the past, has very few left now. Even these are under threat due to various factors including encroachment of lake beds and unscientific discharge of sewage into the water bodies. A study on the quality of water by the Lake Development Authority (LDA) has revealed shocking facts: 65 lakes in the city were found contaminated with varied levels of nitrates and phosphates. “The report was submitted to Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) for required regulation on June 30,” said M.S. Gaudar, member secretary, KSPCB.

Of the 593 city lakes that come under BBMP, the BDA, minor irrigation department, zilla panchayat and forest department, the LDA has chosen 77 lakes for the analysis on quality of water.

“We have found all the 65 lakes to be contaminated with different levels of phosphates and nitrates. The next round of reports will be submitted on October 31, which will give a comprehensive picture of the city lakes,” said U.V. Singh, Lake Development Authority.

While nitrate levels are the highest in Kaggadasapura lake, the level of phosphates are high in 29 lakes including Kaggadasapura lake, Jaraganahalli lake and Madavara lake. It is highest in Bellandur lake, says the report.

“While the tolerance level of nitrate is 45mg/litre, for phosphate it is 5mg/litre,” says Dr Alka Singh, consultant biochemist at Apollo International. “If the nitrate level in water exceeds the tolerance level, it affects the function of the kidney and liver. It is disastrous to livestock,” she warns.

High levels of phosphate presence in water leads to renal failure, decrease in serum calcium that can result in Tetany-convulsions, she says adding that high levels of phosphate is dangerous for aquatic life.

Eighty per cent of the 870 MLD (million litres per day) water supplied by BWSSB is used for non-potable purposes, generating large quantities of sewage everyday. Only 15 per cent of this sewage is treated in treatment plants. The rest enter storm water drains, which are meant to route excess rainwater to lakes. The presence of detergents in sewage water causes phosphate contamination of lakes, which eventually leads to the growth of algae and water hyacinths, choking lakes to death.
Last Updated on Friday, 17 July 2009 06:57
 
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