Residents from the area had complained of a range of ailments, including allergic rhinitis, chronic cough, frequent common cold, tightening of chest muscles during breathing.
The Deonar dumping ground has been officially substantiated as a virtual ‘gas chamber’ as a study conducted by the department of chest medicine of KEM Hospital found that respiratory morbidity in the area is higher than what is seen in any other region in Mumbai.
Residents from the area had complained of a range of ailments, including allergic rhinitis, chronic cough, frequent common cold, tightening of chest muscles during breathing, wheezing and chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder (COPD), according to general physicians in Chembur.
According to the report, about 48.7 per cent of the residents who participated in the questionnaire analysis suffered from cough, while 31.4 per cent complained of breathlessness.
A clinical check up that was conducted in the area had revealed that 12.7% of the population had productive cough (cough that produce phlegm) and 10.8% had dry cough and 11.8% reported paroxysmal (sudden uncontrollable attacks) breathlessness and 15.7% had exertion breathlessness.
The respiratory morbidity showed 47.1% of restrictive defect and 35.8% obstructive defect among non smokers. Restrictive defect is a condition marked by total lung capacity, whereas obstructive defect is a respiratory abnormality characterised by a slow rate of forced expiration like asthma or bronchitis.
“Regular burning of garbage and the dangerous smoke emerging from burning piles of garbage has affected residents residing not just on the fringes of the dump, but all residents living in the neighbouring areas, as the wind carries the foul smoke in all directions,” said Dr Rajeev Lakhani, a general practitioner in the area.
Dr Amita Athavale, professor and head of department of chest medicine, KEM Hospital, concluded the report suggesting an aero-biological study on the area along with an air quality monitoring pertinent to landfill sites including the monitoring of hydrogen sulphide and methane with other particles.
The team had visited Deonar in November 2008 and had distributed 200 questionnaires among residents, of which they received 105 responses. Deonar dumping ground is Mumbai’s oldest garbage dump from 1927 and receives almost 6000 tonnes of garbage everyday. The dump is nearly 130 hectares in area.
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