Indian Express 29.07.2010
Malaria: construction sites under scanner, notices soon
Express News Service Tags : malaria cases, mumbai Posted: Thu Jul 29 2010, 00:17 hrs
On Tuesday and Wednesday, guardian ministers Naseem Khan (suburbs) and Jayant Patil (island city) held meetings to review the situation. The seven high risk wards -- Lalbaug, Worli, Parel, Kurla, Ghatkopar and Andheri--¿ which boast of maximum construction projects have reported 58 per cent of the total malaria cases.
F South (Parel), G south (Worli), L (Kurla) account for 30 per cent of patients, while G North (Dadar), K East (Andheri), N (Ghatkopar) and E (Byculla) account for 25 per cent. Of the total cases, 87 per cent of detected cases and 95 per cent of the victims are from slums and construction sites.
Khan directed the civic body to carry out precautionary measures to curb malaria which includes fogging and inspection of sites which have water accumulation and could result in larvae formation. "Those construction sites which are not undertaking measures to prevent mosquitoes and larvae formation should be sent immediate notices," Khan said.
Patil said that the municipal corporation has been holding special public campaigns and adequate provisions to handle the crisis. "We will also be starting a health card system wherein construction workers, who are more prone to malaria, would undergo check-up every 15 days," he said.
Standing Committee Chairman Rahul Shewale said that the Builders Association has agreed to appoint supervisors on their construction sites to keep a check on malaria cases. "They will appoint supervisors and maintain better hygiene on these sites to avoid these spots from becoming a breeding ground for mosquitoes," said Shewale.
After recent media reports claimed that malaria is now also affecting heart and is causing strokes in patients with no history of heart ailments, Patil has asked the BMC to look into the matter. "We would medically examine the cases of such patients and verify with the doctors if there is any truth to these reports. Such reports are creating panic among people," Patil said.
The BMC officials, however, refuted such claims. "There is no medically established co-relation between malaria and heart ailments. We will examine the case papers of all such patients. However, all the BMC doctors are of the opinion that it is not possible," said Additional Municipal Commissioner (health), Manisha Mhaiskar.
