Dengue In Bollywood
By Shura Darapuri
04 November, 2012
Countercurrents.org
The other day I happened to hear a song of Priyanka Chopra “IN MY CITY” where she claimed everyone was welcomed there. That set me wondering which city she was hinting at? Was it the city of opportunities, Mumbai with people from different parts of India seeking employment there or some other place? That’s because the present political scenario doesn’t seem inviting to people, especially from some of the overcrowded states, for various reasons.
It is for the same reason, natives from some parts of India, certainly do not feel very comfortable with her invitation. All the more, recently, with the death of the doyen of the film industry Mr Yash Chopra, a renowned filmmaker, who died due to a bite of a tiny Aedes aegypti mosquito adds to worries of the many. Yash Chopra, belonging to affluent section of society with the best medical advice and best of medical aid was compelled to ultimately surrender before no bigger a creature than a little mosquito.
It draws attention to the pathetic sanitation conditions of Mumbai, the financial capital of India. On the one hand, the city has the sparkling tinsel town to its credit and on the other an entourage of struggling slum dwellers. The disparities are glaring enough, on the one hand there are high class gentry living “air conditioned lives”, on the other hand, there are toiling masses compelled to live in “conditions” unfit for the existence of ‘any living being’. Mumbai in fact tops in having some of the largest slum in the world where water supply and sanitation are inadequate.
Historically, slums have grown in Mumbai as a response to a growth of population far beyond the capacity of existing housing. The other reason for the formation of slums in Mumbai lies in the fact, that as the city grew, it took over land that was traditionally used for other purposes. The Koli fishermen were displaced during the development of the harbour and port. Those driven out of the fishing villages improvised living space that was often far shabbier than before. This process continues even now.
On the other hand, some villages were encysted by the city growing around them. Dharavi, once the largest slum in Asia was originally a village with a small tanning industry, which became a slum over time. Many of the older slums in Byculla and Khar were initially separate villages, with their own traditional industries.
Whatever reasons may lay behind their emergence, they have for now certainly turned into breeding grounds for both communicable and non communicable diseases. According to the civic body’s statistics, E-ward that has areas such as Byculla and Mumbai Central reported maximum cases of dengue. The Baiganwadi slum at Govandi is becoming a source of fright to the Maharashtra state and civic health departments. Two confirmed polio cases have been reported in 2 weeks from this area. The water source and drains in this area are contaminated with dengue transmitting mosquitoes and malarial parasites.
It has also drawn our attention to the fact that as long as disparities are going to be there, rich or poor, high or low, none may remain unaffected by its outcome for long, disparities are also responsible for unhygienic sanitary conditions and habits. But that doesn’t mean that the poor alone are responsible for the unclean environment. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), on Tuesday, said that 60% of the cases of dengue are from non-slum areas Mohan Adtani, additional municipal commissioner, said, “The breeding spots for Aedes mosquitoe, which causes dengue, are generally flower pots, tin cans and used paper cups.
History has shown that “the palaces are built on the blood and sweat of the toiling masses” who are themselves forced to live in the most detestable surroundings. That means, the rich alone may be held solely responsible for creating unhygienic conditions. Apart from that, the callousness of the government which happen to be made up of ‘rich and educated’ sections of society further accentuate the problems relating to cleanliness and sanitation. In the absence of proper waste disposal system and most importantly absence of basic civic sense ultimately lead to disastrous results.
There is an urgent need to educate the masses about cleanliness and sanitation. It may be done compulsorily at the school level. Media can also play an important role in spreading awareness. It is good that Vidya Balan has undertaken the Sanitation campaign. People tend to respond better to the celebrities request.
Recently, the actor-filmmaker Farhan Akhtar seemed dismayed at the state of sanitation in the Indian Railways and felt the condition demanded immediate attention. “Looking at the unhygienic state of our railway lines, it needs more attention from the sanitation ministry (ministry of drinking water and sanitation) than the railways. It’s a prime environment for mosquitoes to breed and it stretches across the length and breadth of the country” Farhan wrote on twitter recently. The fact that, even in 2012, waste from train toilets fall directly onto the tracks later to be ‘manually’ cleared by is certainly shameful.
It is high time sanitation and cleanliness programmes are taken seriously by both government and the people of India. That is because, if that is not done, day is not far when people of India irrespective of caste, colour, creed, language and religion would be heading rapidly together towards the graves, dug by themselves!
Shura Darapuri, Associate Professor , BBAU, Lucknow
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