Mayor Firhad Hakim has written to the railways to clean both sides of the Tollygunge Railway Overbridge where health workers of the Calcutta Municipal Corporation (CMC) have found mosquito larvae in containers.
Hakim’s letter was addressed to Deepak Nigam, the divisional railway manager (DRM) of the Sealdah division.
“It is reported by the health officials of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation that filth and garbage are piled on both sides of the Tollygunge Railway Over Bridge,” the letter reads.
“The officials have also noticed mosquito larvae in broken clay pots, discarded plastic containers, coconut shells there while carrying out a routine inspection,” it says.
“These unsanitary conditions may turn the place into a breeding ground for mosquitoes and cause a threat of breaking out of mosquito-borne diseases.”
An official in the mayor’s office said the letter was sent last week but an official in the DRM’s office said they received the letter on Monday.
“We have informed the department that is in charge of maintenance of the premises for necessary action. The DRM will reply to the mayor,” the official in the DRM’s office said.
Kausik Mitra, chief public relations officer of Eastern Railway, declined to comment on the specific plot. “We have health inspectors who are responsible to see whether there is any mosquito-breeding site in any property of the railways and take steps to prevent breeding,” he said.
Metro has reported that piles of garbage had been accumulating on a plot beside the railway tracks near the Tollygunge Railway Overbridge. The accumulated waste was still lying there when this newspaper visited the spot on Monday.