Mumbai: BMC swimming pools drowning in apathy

While you may be looking forward to taking a cool dip in the swimming pool to beat the sweltering heat of the summer the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation BMC seems to be least bothered about the safety of the members of their swimming pools even after two people have died in two pools since last yearmidday has reported on both the deaths Last month 21yearold Kanchan Rode allegedly drowned in the Ghatkopar swimming pool Her father had alleged that the pool lacked a medical officer or an ambulance to get her quickly to a hospital and that had led o her deathAlso read Following students death all BMC swimming pools to get doctorsIn February last year a 60yearold man had collapsed beside the Shivaji Park swimming pool and died in the hospital Members had also alleged then that had there been a medical officer he couldrsquove been saved by giving proper first aidThe civic body had also convened a meeting to appoint medical officers at all their pools lsquoAll swimming pools to get doctors April 12 midday decided to check on the current state of affairs at both pools Worryingly things seem to have not changed at allShivaji Park swimming poolThe Mahatma Gandhi Memorial swimming pool in Shivaji Park has nearly 14000 members The daily count of people is about 500600 There is a baby pool for kids a warmup pool a diving area and an Olympicsize pool Yet there is no medical officer here and the stretcher that is supposed to ferry a patient to an ambulance is in tattersThe BMCrun pool at Shivaji Park has nearly 14000 members but the lone stretcher to ferry people in case of an emergency is falling apart PicsSatyajit DesaiMoreover lifeguards at this pool are busy imparting swimming lessons When this reporter asked them why the lifeguards said they had been asked to double up as trainers Members however are a worried lot Vijay Vichare a regular at the pool said ldquoThe pool is packed in April and MayLifeguards simply canrsquot manage both jobs of training people and saving livesrdquo The firstaid box which is meant to be used to provide primary treatment to a victim only has bandage and antiseptic cream which are of no use in drowning cases The floats too are in poor conditionAlso read Days after girl drowned BMC pools in Mumbai yet to get doctorsThe stretcher at the Shivaji Park pool which has 14000 members is in tattersA BMC employee who refused to be identified said ldquoAround 4050 people come here to learn swimming However the floats are in a bad condition and are too few in numberrdquo ldquoWe are waiting for a tender to be passed Once it is passed we will have new floats as well as all the other essentialsrdquo said a BMC officialFee hikesAnother daily swimmer Dhananjay Kuveskar added ldquoEvery year the pool fees are increased by 10 per cent This year the yearly fees have shot up to Rs 5000 but there is not a single medical officer or ambulance to ferry a patient to a hospitalrdquoProblemsgtgt No medical officer or ambulance gtgt Stretcher is torngtgt Floats are in bad state and also in shortagegtgt Lifeguards are busy training peoplegtgt Firstaid box is illequipped for emergenciesGhatkopar swimming poolThe firstaid box at Ghatkopar swimming pool below only has an antiseptic solution and bandage which is of no use in case someone is rescued from drowning PicsAtul KambleAt this facility there is a stretcher but no ambulance or a medical officer The firstaid box leaves a lot to be desired it only has cotton and an antiseptic cream The pool also has four lifeguardcumtrainers though they are busy doing the latterAlso read After man drowns at Dadar swimming pool BMC dives into actionTwo of the trainers are dedicated to teaching women members A BMC official said ldquoAt least 500 people come to swim here daily We need a minimum of seven lifeguards but the BMC has not taken any necessary stepsrdquoProblemsgtgt No medical officergtgt Firstaid kit only has cotton and antiseptic creamgtgt Only four lifeguards for 500 people who come here every day