A thick layer of smog engulfed Kochi on Friday, suffocating residents, as fire raged on at Brahmapuram waste management plant for the eighth day. As huge clouds of toxic smoke billowing from the site engulfed the city, the Kerala government decided to conduct a health survey in the areas around Brahmapuram, PTI reported.
Kerala Govt To Conduct Health Survey
Health Minister Veena George said the survey would include people who are immediately affected and also those living in areas near the waste plant.
"We have taken this decision in a high-level meeting today. Our community medicine experts will prepare a questionnaire. The district team will prioritise the places and our field staff will be trained to do the house-to-house survey, in order to analyse what is the real situation on the ground," George told reporters.
The government has also earmarked beds in hospitals for those affected due to the pollution. Hundred beds have been earmarked in General Hospital, Ernakulam, and 20 beds in Taluk Hospital, Tripunithura, for patients.
The fire broke out at the Kochi city corporation-run waste treatment plant on March 2. Fire tenders have been working round the clock to douse the fire and control the smoke.
For the past one week, health department employees have been conducting special medical camps in Kochi for those affected by the toxic smoke.
She said the whole focus of the government was now to overcome the crisis and it was looking to implement a scientific solution to permanently address this issue.
Kerala HC Appoints Panel To Monitor Brahmapuram Fire Situation
Meanwhile, the Kerala High Court pulled up the government for failing to tackle the fire at the Brahmapuram waste plant and appointed a committee to monitor the situation.
The committee comprises the Ernakulam district collector, Pollution Control Board officials and secretary of the Kerala State Legal Services Authority, PTI reported.
A bench of Justices S V Bhatti and Basant Balaji also directed the Kerala Chief Secretary to inform the court in detail the steps taken by the government to tackle the crisis.
Air Quality Dips, Kochi May See Exodus of Residents
The fire has led to a dip in air quality in the commercial capital of the state and residents have been asked to wear N-95 masks if they venture out. Schools have asked children in lower classes to remain at home.
Several families in Kochi have chosen to leave the coastal city. A principal of a school said many parents informed them they were leaving the city due to the smoke and wanted their children be exempted from attending classes for now, PTI reported.
"Some of those children suffer from allergic and breathing issues and when parents saw their kids having problems due to the smoke they decided to leave the city for now. Many parents informed me about it," Sanskara school principal Vinumon K Mathew told PTI.
Dr George Mothi Justin, Consultant Pulmonologist at the Medical Trust Hospital, told PTI that inhaling such fumes would result in reduction of lung capacity and decrease in a person's life span and also might cause cancer.
(With inputs from PTI and IANS)