Is Monorail giving locals diarrhoea?

Water-borne diseases strike Currey Road as residents get smelly, brown water; MMRDA says the Monorail construction in the area is not to blame despite the BMC spotting a leakage in a water supply line

Over the last three days, more than 50 residents of the area around Currey Road station, where Phase II of the Monorail work is going on, have been suffering from diarrhoea and stomach aches because of contaminated water. They complain that the water they receive in their buildings has a foul smell and a yellow tinge, which is taking a toll on their health. Though BMC officials found a leakage in the water supply line responsible for the contamination, MMRDA officials ruled out rupturing any pipeline during the ongoing construction of the Monorail.
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Sample this: Cases of diarrhoea, dysentery and stomach aches have
increased in the area. Doctors say the illnesses could be because of the
dirty water. Representation pic

Two-year-old Swarali Tambe, who resides at Om Pimpleshwar Society, is suffering from dysentery. "The water tasted different and seemed dirty. We thought it would be okay the next day but we have been receiving the same kind of water for three days now. My daughter has fallen ill. The doctor said that it's because of contamination," said Sachin, Swarali's father, who works with an IT firm and resides in Currey Road.

When MiD DAY visited Swarali's home, we found that running water smelt foul and stored water seemed to have oily traces. "When we fill the water in the morning, it has a darkish brown colour," added Sachin. Like Swarali, many residents of the area are falling sick after consuming the water. General practitioner Dr Hrishikesh Shingte, who runs a clinic in the area, said, "I have been seeing at least 15-20 patients a day with complaints of vomiting, diarrhea and fever. The colonies here are getting water with a peculiar foul smell, which may have triggered the illnesses."

Other diseases afflicting residents are viral infection, jaundice and typhoid. Siddhesh Warandekar (19), who just appeared for his HSC examination, has not been able to get out of bed for a few days. "He is weak and has dysentery. We have given his blood for testing. Doctors suspect he might have jaundice," said his mother Priyanka, at their house in Devgiri building. Pallavi Gavkar (38), a housewife, has also taken ill. Said Pandurang, her husband, "We thought that the water just smelled dirty, but it started tasting weird as well. My wife took ill and has been vomiting constantly."

Leakage
After noticing illnesses on the rise, the local Shiv Sena leaders brought the issue to the notice of Sunil Shinde, corporator of the area. On Sunday morning, Shinde reached the affected buildings along with BMC officers from the Water Department to check for contamination. "We saw that there was a leakage in the water supply in the patch near Mafatlal mills on NM Joshi Marg where the Monorail work is going on. There seems to be a mixing of dirty water in the supply line," Shinde said. Shiv Sena leader Dutta Satosa, who resides in Matruchaya society, said, "We have put up notices in all the societies in the area asking them to drink only boiled water. Many people have started buying mineral water."

The Other Side
MiD DAY got in touch with officials from the MMRDA, which is constructing the Monorail. Joint Project Director Dilip Kawatkar said, "Officers working on the Jacob Circle-Wadala Monorail route told me that there has been no burst or leakage in the water pipeline during construction. So I don't think that the ongoing work has anything
to do with the contaminated water. We will still double check."

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