A tweet by a Borivali housing complex resident about stagnant water last week resulted in the society receiving a notice from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) on Thursday.

The resident, Ankit Thakur, had on Tuesday tweeted a picture of a swimming pool in the Discovery Complex in Dattapada, Borivali (East), saying it was stagnant and a breeding ground for mosquitoes. The disaster management cell of the BMC responded to his tweet and assured him of quick action.

The inspection

On Wednesday morning, a team from the BMC’s R Central Ward office reached the complex and inspected the pool, after which they found it was not maintained properly. The team also found that it was out of use, and that water from the recent rain showers had collected inside it, leading to the breeding of mosquitoes.

“While measures such as filling the pool with sand as a preventive step were suggested on Wednesday, we conducted a second inspection on Thursday and collected samples of the water to check them for larvae. We have also issued a notice to the society, asking them to clean up the pool and cover the pool at the earliest, failing which further action will be taken,” Assistant Municipal Commissioner Ramakant Biradar, R Central Ward said.

Civic officials also found out that a notice was already issued to the society in this regard during an inspection conducted before the onset of the monsoon, as the swimming pool did not have a working filter.

“We conduct regular inspections to mark the places where water can collect easily and become a breeding ground for mosquitoes. We also issue notices to societies to remind them of the precautions one needs to take to avoid stagnation of water,” a civic official said.

Residents of the building said that while the pool is cleaned regularly, it is in bad shape as the area surrounding it is being renovated.

“One of our fellow residents was recently diagnosed with dengue, which has put the building under BMC scrutiny. This is a dangerous season, and we need to quickly resolve this problem,” Sham Mhaskar, a resident said.

Another resident said children were particularly at risk. “The children’s park is very close to the swimming pool. We can’t risk our children falling ill, especially since the schools have reopened,” he said.