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Much needed fumigation nowhere in sight KARACHI’S mosquito problem is nothing new, and one is reminded of the days when citizens and print media both complained about the “mosquito menace” for which the then Karachi Municipal Corporation had failed to do anything. The fact that there are cases of viral fever being reported from all over the city and doctors contending that a majority of these patients are affected by mosquito-borne infection made it rather natural that one recalls the days we had far more focus on this mosquito dimension. That the KMC has grown in size and stature and so has the city with more people, more resources, more foreign funding, more awareness, and more mosquitoes, as someone remarked cynically. But that wasn’t quite the point being underlined in view of the viral cases, the worry was that in the anti-mosquito drive that the city government had launched there was a reported shortage of vehicles, according to a Dawn story dated 28th November. The shortage of vehicles in Karachi for something as urgently needed as this anti-mosquito campaign is rather strange. Rich citizens in a poor city, comes as a theme to mind once again. To discerning sensitive citizens there is this irony that while Karachi’s private cars and now imported cars are growing rapidly in number, and creating problems including that of squeezing out parking space, there is a shortage of what are described as “fumigation vehicles”. It appears there are only twelve vehicles available with the department. So the fumigation is carried out on a town-wise basis, instead of being done simultaneously all over the city. Given the reputation that the government-owned and managed vehicles have, it wouldn’t be surprising to know that the road worthiness of those vehicles was unsatisfactory, to say the least. One citizen remarked that newspapers should publish photographs of those vehicles while carrying out that exercise. The viral fever that threatens to become an epidemic, the resultant fear in the public mind and the facts that mosquitoes have swarmed many residential and commercial areas, are also reflective of the general perception that Karachi has a long way to go before it can become a clean city. It is a long uphill climb. I want to mention here an interesting expression that I heard over an FM radio channel last week wherein a town nazim being interviewed on the problems of his area (it was one of the suburbs) said that in the population of eight hundred thousand that he was dealing with the problem of SOS was the most serious one. I did not understand SOS until he referred very casually to SOS which he elaborated meant “sewerage and sanitation.” Save our Souls! Look what has happened to SOS, and what it has come to mean. This suspected viral haemorrhagic fever needs to be contained effectively before it turns into an epidemic. The city government and the provincial health department need to act promptly and reassure the city’s population by launching visible cleanliness drives and anti-mosquito campaigns. It is stated that doctors at the three major city hospitals had received patients with clinical symptoms of haemorrhagic fever from almost all parts of the city. The cause of this fever is stated to be the Dengue virus, which is caused by a mosquito bite. Low income areas are particularly vulnerable. Medical experts say that the increase in the Dengue positive cases can be contained and further cases prevented by eliminating mosquitoes. They point to the unhygienic conditions, especially around hospitals, educational institutions, recreation spots, commercial areas, and even residential areas where garbage collection is irregular and improper. I was talking to a young DMC student about the viral fever cases scenario and the hygiene ambience in the CHK, and mild though she sounded, she was equally categorical when she said that the hospital was unbelievably dirty even now. And there were no signs that the levels of cleanliness had been raised. She went on to say that the young medical students for their own personal safety had been buying gloves and masks daily, and spending their “pocket money” for this purpose. Then our conversation moved in the direction of the “blankets of mosquitoes” that are found in some parts of that hospital. There are people who are anxious about the viral fever cases, and in varying degrees of scare and apprehension. In one instance, to illustrate this state of mind, one Karachiite sent his nephew a SMS warning him of the viral fever, and the fact that eating out could be dangerous. That nephew sent it to me and it reads as “Please refrain from eating out. It was recently discovered that four children died because of Congo virus after eating at a certain restaurant in Defence, Khadda market. Fifty other cases have been reported at the AKUH. Please forward this message to others and don’t eat out”. To reflect varying attitudes here is another situation from another public hospital. A medical representative said to a lady doctor that they were avoiding visiting public hospitals because of the prevalent fear of viral fever that lives in these large “unclean” hospitals. She apparently was the type who believed in fate and responded “but you can die of something else!!” Having said all this brings me to the familiar wider context of Karachi’s hygiene dimension being a constant ugly reminder that there is an agenda that is pending. It is relevant to mention here that the new nazim of the city during his visit to the New Karachi last week indicated that the garbage collection network would soon be privatized, which would not only improve the sanitary situation, but also provide revenue to the city government. Addressing the town nazims, UC nazims, and councillors, he asked the New Karachi TMA to appoint sanitation workers in each UC of the town on a contractual basis to overcome the shortage of sanitary staff. Isn’t it strange that in a city that has such a huge, constant cleanliness problem, there is a shortage of staff? And at the same time there is an unemployment problem, as well. Nevertheless, it was disappointing to read this story last week that there had been a reduction of Rs7 billion in Karachi package while Kamal and Niamat hold each other responsible. Keeping in view this disappointment of Karachiites, I am certain that mosquitoes are therefore a smaller problem.
That the KMC has grown in size and stature and so has the city with more people, more resources, more foreign funding, more awareness, and more mosquitoes, as someone remarked cynically. But that wasn’t quite the point being underlined in view of the viral cases, the worry was that in the anti-mosquito drive that the city government had launched there was a reported shortage of vehicles, according to a Dawn story dated 28th November.