Mumbai: Measles Outbreak In Govandi Due To Landfill And Biomedical Project?

Mumbai, 15th November 2022: There has been an outbreak of measles in the Govandi area of Mumbai, and the Municipal Corporation has focused on the Govandi area where most patients are found. Meanwhile, a resident of Shivaji Nagar has sent a notice directly to the Union Health Minister Bharti Pawar, claiming that there is an outbreak of measles in the area due to the chemicals released from the landfill and the biomedical waste disposal project.

Since there is a biomedical project in the Govandi area, the residents of Govandi slums have been facing various diseases for the past two years. Due to this, the citizens living here are suffering from tuberculosis and asthma. Meanwhile, measles has now broken out in Govandi. The garbage from the entire city is disposed of at the landfill in Govandi. Therefore, the environment here has become polluted. There is another biomedical project at a distance of 150 meters from the landfill. The fumes that come out of it are very dangerous. These include hazardous chemicals like hydrochloric acid, sulfur dioxide and sulfur trioxide. As this has been going on for the last 13 years, the citizens of this place are facing many health problems. In this regard, the founder president of the New Sangam Welfare Society, Fayaz Alam Sheikh, has filed a case in the Bombay High Court and National Green Arbitration.

It is clear from the research of the Tata Institute of Social Sciences that the death rate due to pollution in Govandi is 9.8 per cent. Therefore, Fiyaz Alam Sheikh has sent a notice to Union Health Minister Bharti Pawar. “The Ministry of Environment should look into the matter and submit its report to the Environment Control Corporation and us,” the notice said. Fiyaz Alam Sheikh has warned in the notice that immediate action should be taken against the project, which is releasing hazardous chemicals into the environment, and an order to close it.