The Tata Memorial Centre in Navi Mumbai's Kharghar has alerted the Maharashtra government, stating that illegal stone quarrying nearby is damaging the hospital and endangering patients' lives. Dr. Pankaj Chaturvedi, the Centre's Director, raised these concerns in a letter to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on July 10
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The authorities at the Tata Memorial Centre in Kharghar, Navi Mumbai, have written to the Maharashtra government, alleging that uncontrolled and illicit stone quarrying on a nearby hill is not only causing structural damage to their facility but also endangering the lives of patients, reported news agency PTI.
Dr Pankaj Chaturvedi, the Director of the Advanced Centre for Treatment, Research & Education in Cancer (ACTREC), widely known as the Tata Memorial Centre, raised these concerns in a letter addressed to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on 10 July.
His letter stated, "I am writing to express deep concern over the escalating noise and dust pollution caused by unregulated stone quarrying adjacent to the Tata Memorial Centre-ACTREC in Kharghar. The northwest hill near our cancer treatment facility has been severely impacted with multiple pits excavated and green cover obliterated. Blasting with explosives, followed by intensive drilling, generates deafening noise and toxic dust clouds, jeopardising both patient health and our fragile environment."
According to PTI, the letter further stated that these quarrying activities have persisted for decades, with the extracted stone being crushed for construction, in violation of environmental norms and causing the destruction of wetlands.
Dr Chaturvedi further said in his letter to the Chief Minister that the resulting dust covers some residential areas and even infiltrates the sterile treatment zones within the hospital. This poses a significant threat to immunocompromised patients undergoing life-saving treatments, making them vulnerable to airborne particulate infiltration.
Senior citizens and local residents have highlighted National Green Tribunal (NGT) guidelines, which mandate environmental clearances for quarrying and regulate blasting near inhabited areas. The letter noted that morning visibility is deteriorating, exposing commuters to unsafe conditions, and pollution has transformed the region into an environmental degradation hotspot.
Furthermore, the letter added that the stone quarrying has caused damage to the hospital buildings, including cracked beams and slabs. This damage has resulted from rainwater seepage, fostering fungal growth and thereby creating additional hazards, according to PTI.
"We earnestly request your immediate intervention to halt these destructive quarrying practices. Protecting the health and lives of our cancer patients, preserving biodiversity and maintaining the integrity of eco-sensitive zones must be a collective priority," Dr Chaturvedi appealed.
(With inputs from PTI)
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