Blamed for malaria menace, city builders vow to fight it

They will run free dispensaries at construction sites for laborers, appoint doctors to check them regularly

Construction sites across the city, with their pools of stagnant water, are breeding grounds for mosquitoes. Migrant construction workers are spreading malaria in the city.
With such allegations raining from all quarters, and with malaria fast becoming an epidemic, builders in the city are feeling the heat. They have come forward to help the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) in its drive to curb the spread of the disease.
Several builders have decided to run free dispensaries at construction sites for labourers. One builder has volunteered to put up pandals at big civic hospitals, such as Sion and KEM, which have an acute shortage of beds for patients. The builder said a 5,000 square foot pandal will accommodate 200 malaria patients.
Worried about the spread of malaria in the city, mayor Shraddha Jadhav called an emergency meeting on Tuesday. Top civic officials, central agencies and realty sector organisations attended the meeting at the civic headquarters.
The civic administration has been under fire for its failure to control the spread of malaria. The disease has claimed 42 lives in the city this year. BMC chief Swadhin Kshatriya said a major cleanliness drive will be launched across the city on Wednesday.
Kshatriya asked the developers to appoint doctors to treat labourers at construction sites. "The presence of doctors will ensure that labourers get prompt medication. So far, workers have borne the brunt of malaria in the city," additional municipal commissioner Manisha Mhaiskar said.
The builders agreed to start dispensaries at construction sites. They pledged to provide the civic body with mosquito nets to be distributed in slums. RM Bhattad of the Bhattad Group agreed to erect pandals at major hospitals for malaria patients.