Nagpur: Expressing deep concern over rampant spread of dengue and chikungunya in Nagpur, the Nagpur Bench of Bombay High Court sternly observed on Wednesday that every other home was grappling with the vector-borne diseases.
The Court remarked, “Nagpurians are facing a hard time, as not only are the hospitals full of patients suffering from dengue, chikungunya, or other viral infections, but the situation is also dire in every household.” After reviewing photographs of the unhygienic conditions within the city limits, submitted by Advocate Tejal Agre, Justice Nitin Sambre and Justice Abhay Mantri, while hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL), directed the Chief Engineer of the Public Works Department (PWD), Nagpur Division, and the Commissioner of the Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) to file affidavits outlining the steps taken to control and eradicate the spread of these viral infections.
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The court also directed the PWD to file a response regarding the removal of debris on the roadside under their control. The court noted that the Deputy Municipal Commissioner (Solid Waste Management Department) reported that 5,164 staff members are available for sweeping across all ten zones. In addition to these Municipal Corporation employees, private agencies, namely M/s. A.G. Enviro Infra Projects Pvt. Ltd., Thane, and M/s. BVG India Limited, Pune, have been assigned five zones each for door-to-door collection and transportation of garbage/solid waste.
The PIL was originally filed in 2014 by social worker Anil Agre, who urged the court to mandate proactive measures against dengue and malaria. Adv Tejal Agre, through a recent application, informed the court that there has been a notable increase in cases, yet the NMC has not implemented effective preventive strategies
The court’s observations underscored the severity of the situation, pointing out that even upscale areas have not been spared.
During the hearing, petitioner’s counsel Tejal Agre presented photographs showing stagnant water and debris cluttering the roads in several areas. These visuals prompted the court to question NMC and PWD employees’ efficiency and directed immediate action to clear the debris. The bench criticised the NMC, questioning the role of its 5,000 employees in maintaining the city’s cleanliness. “What exactly are these employees doing to keep the city clean?” the bench asked.
Agre said the NMC has only 24 hand machines for fogging — an insufficient number given the city’s growing population and scale of the outbreak. She suggested that fines totalling Rs 6 crore collected from vacant plot owners could be utilised to purchase more machines.
