Hyderabad: Anandbagh air full of pollutants

Hyderabad: Residents of Anandbagh, Safilguda, say they are breathing air laced with a pungent and strong chemical odour. The intensity of the smell, caused by pollution of the air with chemicals, is more after 6 pm and goes on till the early hours of the day.

The 50-odd electronic and chemical factories located in Moulaali are the main cause for pollution, the residents said in a complaint filed with the GHMC and the Pollution Control Board.

Residents often complain of nausea and headache when the smell gets strong. "We often have the experience of smelling something that makes us sick," said a resident.

Moulali is home to large and small-scale chemical, steel and electronic industries. The smallscale factories are mostly dye and paint makers. Moulaali, like Quthbullapur and Patancherru, was marked as an industrial zone and factories were permitted to operate there. In recent times, several colonies have come up in the area.

Speaking of the smell, Mr Suresh Kumar, president of the Anand Bagh Welfare Association, said, "The intensity is more when there is no vehicle movement. Residents don't know which company to blame, as there are over 50 big and small factories. This makes us uneasy, most of the families are worried."

Dr Bharathi Kumari, a general physician at Anandbagh, said she has attended on a few patients who complained of nausea, vomiting and headache, especially students.

"Anandbagh residents face two major issues - dust from the never-ending road laying and construction of road under bridge and the smell from the industries. If inhaled deeply, it hits the nervous and respiratory system. Patients are being suggested alternatives like using a face mask and air refreshers at home," she said.

Medical issues very common
Air pollution is an important reason behind complications in the 'orbit' - the cavity in which eye and its appendages are situated - arising in sinusitis patients, especially those who are already facing health issues like diabetes, ENT specialists said.

Harmful gases like carbon monoxide and hydrocarbons in polluted air affect the immunity of patients suffering from sinusitis resulting in orbital complications, which in some cases can even become life-threatening and lead to loss of vision.

A study on understanding and tackling the orbital complications arising post-sinusitis in 134 patients at the Government ENT Hospital at Koti, doctors found that most patients were from areas affected by industrial pollution like Balanagar. The study found that most patients in the study were from poor economic background living in overcrowded houses.

Dr Muneeruddin Ahmed S., former professor at the department of ENT, Osmania Medical College and co-author of the study, said, "People affected with sinusitis from well-to-do economic backgrounds also need to take care, especially if they work in air conditioned buildings. Lack of maintenance of air conditioners results in fungal and bacterial growth which can trigger infections and orbital complications."

Dr Jaswinder Singh, ENT surgeon at a corporate hospital, said: “Air pollution results in respiratory problems; orbital complications mainly occur among those whose health is weak, like those suffering from diabetes, cancer, AIDS or other diseases which affect the immune system.”

He said that eye and brain being organs located closest to the sinus, infection spreading from the sinus could affect them fastest.

Dr Muneeruddin said one of the reasons for orbital complications becoming aggressive was lack of timely intervention. He said in his study: "Orbital complications still pose a serious threat in this antibiotic era when it occurs secondary to sinusitis affecting the vision and life. If not treated aggressively after initial suspicion, this can lead to irreversible damage."

What could be a symptom of orbital complications
In patients suffering from sinusitis:

• Redness in and around eyes
• Swelling of eyes
• Pain in the eye socket
• Double vision
• Continuous nasal discharge or stuffiness
• Fever n Headache