Hyderabad: Rains up risk of water-borne diseases

HYDERABAD: After two days of heavy downpour, waterlogging and flooding, residents of some localities are left worried over sewage entering their drinking water pipes, sumps and ground water, leading to water contamination. Locals also said that they have not been able to get even a single drop of clean drinking water since Tuesday.
“Our streets are flooded with sewage water that is overflowing from the manholes due to rains. The same sewage water is now entering water storage units in our houses. Submerged hand pumps are also spewing contaminated water from yesterday. A few people have come to distribute food but there is no clean drinking water,” said B Gangamma, a resident of Mayuri Marg in Begumpet.
Mahammad Irfan, a resident of Safdar Nagar in Borabanda said: “The water we are getting in taps is murky and tastes very bad. We suspect that the damage due to the rains in the last two days might have led to sewage water seeping into drinking water lanes. Procuring some clean drinking water has become our biggest concern now.”
“There is always a high chance of water getting contaminated during monsoons. And when the city has experienced a flood-like situation where several areas have been submerged and sewage water has entered houses, the chances of contracting diseases such as diarrhoea, typhoid, intestinal infections increases manifold,” said Dr P Uma Bala, a microbiologist at Nizam’s Institute of Medical Sciences.
A possibility of seasonal diseases cannot be ruled out after heavy rains in GHMC limits. The urban pimary health centre doctors, nurses and Asha workers have been busy creating awareness among residents living in Puranapul.“Medical camps are being conducted in localities by by Asha workers and doctors,” Dr Abdul Ghani, surgeon , said.