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  Sushmita Sen in BMC’s mosquito menace net

Sushmita Sen in BMC’s mosquito menace net

AGE CORRESPONDENT
Published : Sep 27, 2016, 6:50 am IST
Updated : Sep 27, 2016, 6:50 am IST

Health dept finds 3 breeding sites in her posh Khar penthouse.

Sushmita Sen
 Sushmita Sen

Health dept finds 3 breeding sites in her posh Khar penthouse.

Two weeks after it served notice to Bollywood actor Shahid Kapoor, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) on Monday slapped a notice against actor Sushmita Sen after its staff found three mosquito-breeding sites in her posh terrace apartment at Khar (west).

The notice was served under section 138B of the Mumbai Municipal Corporation Act, said a civic official. The BMC’s health department team had inspected the former Miss Universe’s sprawling penthouse at Satguru Sundari in Khar (west) last Friday. The team found three spots breeding aedis aegypti larvae on her terrace. The aedis aegypti mosquitoes are dengue carriers. Ms Sen will have to shell out Rs 10,000 as penalty. “Owing to her negligence, the surroundings have been contaminated,” said civic officials. Despite repeated attempts made to her manager, Ms Sen remained unavailable for comment.

A fortnight ago, the BMC had sent a notice to Shahid Kapoor after it found mosquito-breeding sites in the swimming pool of his sea-facing apartment at Juhu Tara Road. The leafy lanes of Khar are home to many Bollywood celebrities like Kangana Ranaut, Karan Johar, Saif Ali Khan, Kareena Kapoor Khan, David Dhawan and Pran, among others.

But this star-studded tony suburb is also infested with mosquitoes and potholes during the monsoons. The civic body’s health department had allegedly approached Ms Sen last week to inspect her home, but they were denied entry.

BMC’s insecticide officer Rajan Naringrekar said they inspected the entire house and found mosquito larvae in stagnant water inside a tarpaulin sheet on Ms Sen’s terrace. The staff also came across mosquito-breeding sites inside a hollow artifact on the terrace and rainwater clogged in one of her balconies. As Ms Sen is not in the city, officials pointed out the mosquito-breeding spots to her manager, before cleaning up the area. The BMC’s legal department also plans to file a case with the Metropolitan Magistrate, and the fine could range anywhere between Rs 2,000 to Rs 10,000. “We tried to get access to the actor’s house for the past eight days. Our staff went everyday but were denied entry. Ms Sen’s managers kept telling us to come later. We finally managed to inspect her house on Friday,” said Mr Naringrekar.

Earlier, this month, homes of other Bollywood celebrities like Dilip Kumar, Waheeda Rehman, Rekha, Gulzar, Rishi Kapoor, Kader Khan, Salman Khan, Arbaaz Khan, Ashutosh Gowarikar, Sanjay Dutt, Shaan, Emran Hashmi and Farhan Akhtar were also checked, but the BMC did not find any larvae. So far, the BMC has managed to collect fine amounting to about Rs 27 lakh from people who ignored their warnings and harboured mosquito-breeding spots in their houses.