Mumbai: BMC to form committee to fight rat trouble in civic-run hospitals

The entry of rodents from outside into hospitals is a problem

After the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) initiated a cleaning drive in civic-run hospitals, the authority has now taken a step further by establishing a committee to address the issue of rodents and insects. The BMC insecticide department has proposed the formation of this committee, which will provide recommendations to handle the challenges posed by rodents and insects.

Sudhakar Shinde, the additional municipal commissioner currently overseeing BMC Health, recently visited various civic-run hospitals, including a midnight inspection at KEM hospital in Parel. During this inspection, Shinde observed a noticeable rodent problem. Consequently, in response to his directive, the rodent control team killed around 1,500 rodents on the premises of the civic-run hospital.

Despite these efforts, BMC officials acknowledge that while rodents originate within the hospital premises are being dealt with, there is also an issue of rodents entering from outside. Chetan Chaubal, the head of BMC's insecticide department, has proposed the establishment of a dedicated committee which will comprise an officer from the insecticide department, a sub-engineer from the maintenance department, and a senior doctor or head of a hospital to handle this.

Regarding the operational approach of this committee, an official said that currently, major hospitals such as Nair, KEM, Sion, and Cooper possess their own maintenance departments. In contrast, maintenance responsibilities for other peripheral hospitals and maternity hospitals are overseen by the respective ward teams. The committee's mandate involves conducting monthly visits to the hospitals.

During these visits, the team will identify mosquito breeding sites and potential rodent entry points, which sometimes overlap with mosquito breeding areas. Subsequently, the team will formulate recommendations to address the issues posed by mosquitoes and rodents.

To control rodent-related problems, various measures will be implemented, including the removal of obstacles within the hospital premises, ensuring that food is not left exposed, sealing of rodent entry points and preventing rodents from infiltrating the premises from the outside. For the prevention of mosquito-related issues, steps such as addressing water stagnation and leakages will be taken.