Construction site puddles emerge as monsoon health hazard in Mumbai

Construction sites across the city could be inadvertently turning into breeding grounds for monsoon-related diseases due to the presence of stagnant water, which often gets contaminated by rat urine and sewage. A girl from Wadala was recently treated for leptospirosis at Cama Hospital after accidentally stepping into a puddle of cement and water at a construction site that she crosses daily on her way to school.

The child had a small cut on her leg, which became infected after coming into contact with the water. Since her father works as a watchman at the hospital, she was rushed there in the nick of time. “This is how even a minor skin injury combined with exposure to contaminated stagnant water around construction sites can potentially lead to dangerous infections during the monsoon,” said Dr Tushar Palve, vice-dean, Cama and Albless Hospital.

The area adjoining the construction site in Wadala, where a girl came in contact with contaminated stagnant water, causing leptospirosis. Pic/Atul Kamble

In the past three years, when massive concreting and construction work has been carried out in the city, civic hospitals have seen a 17 per cent increase in monsoon-related diseases.

Borivli incident

Rajni Save, a Borivli East resident living close to Sanjay Gandhi National Park for nearly five decades, said mosquitoes had never been a major concern. But ever since several nearby plots underwent redevelopment over the past few years, every monsoon someone in her family falls ill. “Earlier, none of us had ever contracted dengue or malaria. Since construction started around us, things changed. I suffered from dengue last year. A few days ago, my son developed a fever and his platelet count has dropped. We hope his dengue test report comes back negative," she said. “Such complaints are increasingly being reported from neighbourhoods witnessing intense redevelopment activity,” said Dr Anita Pai, a local physician.

Indirect consequences of concreting

1 Airborne and skin infections
Inhaled concrete dust can cause fungal infections. Constant wet feet from waterlogging can lead to athlete’s foot and rashes

2 Heat/humidity trap
Concrete absorbs heat all day, and releases it at night. Post-rain humidity is about 90 per cent. Bacteria, viruses, and fungi all multiply faster due to this

3 Ambulance/access delay
Waterlogged concreted roads see traffic snarls, causing patients with leptospirosis, dengue, and gastroenteritis, which need early treatment, to reach hospitals late

Mosquito breeding

Dr Vasant Nagwekar, infectious disease specialist, said, “Construction sites are perhaps the biggest mosquito factories during the monsoon. Water collects inside uncovered tanks, tarpaulins, cement bags, pits, and discarded equipment. Since many of these breeding spots are on private premises, routine civic fogging cannot always be done there. Aedes mosquitoes need barely a week of stagnant water to multiply, increasing the chances of dengue, malaria, and chikungunya.”

Lepto risk

According to experts, concreting alters the urban environment in ways that increase exposure to disease-causing organisms if drainage, construction practices, and sanitation are poorly managed.
Dr Palve said, “In a natural landscape, a lot of rainwater seeps into the soil. Once roads, footpaths, and open spaces are concreted, that absorption is lost. When old structures, open grounds, gutters, and footpaths are dug up or concreted, rodents lose their natural habitats. They live, roam around and urinate in the same area as these concrete roads. When people walk through this contaminated water on the road with cuts or abrasions on their feet, bacteria causing leptospirosis can enter the body. The same water often mixes with overflowing sewage, increasing the risk of gastroenteritis, typhoid, and cholera.”

Stagnation situation

“Construction material, cement slurry, and plastic waste frequently find their way into drains, reducing their carrying capacity. The result is prolonged water stagnation after rainfall. Old drainage systems are already under pressure, and when rainwater mixes with overflowing sewage, residents become vulnerable to hepatitis A and E, diarrhoea and other infections,” said Dr Nitin Karnik, head of medicine department, Sion hospital.

17%
Percentage increase in monsoon-related diseases seen in civic hospitals since 2023

June
Month girl got diagnosed with leptospirosis

* This article was originally published here