Why IndiGo's pest control methods for planes don't fly with India's health
On May 31, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said the Zika virus had finally made its way into India. With the authorities confirming three cases, Zika has now emerged as a real and present threat at home. For a country that is densely populated and bracing up for the monsoon, the news and the subsequent warning have understandably created fear. And IndiGo airlines — a major aviation player — plans to use this to its advantage against an NGT order.
Soon after the WHO announcement, the airlines reportedly moved the National Green Tribunal (NGT) against a previous ruling by the green body that enforced a blanket ban on the spraying of disinfectants in all aircraft having passengers on board.
What happened in 2015?
According to PTI, in August 2015, the NGT directed the Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to ensure no disinfectant fumigation is carried out in a plane while a person is sitting inside.
The direction came in response to a plea that contended the spraying of chemicals like phenothrin to counter the mosquito menace was injurious to health as their use carries the risk of cancer and auto-immune diseases like lupus, Parkinson’s disease, and memory loss.
Agreeing with the plea filed by Dr Jain Kumar, a United States-based neurologist and director of the Primary Stroke Centre at Baylor Hospital in Texas, the green court said, "You are supposed to kill mosquitoes, not human beings. You cannot take a risk with the health of the people. Carry out the disinfectant fumigation prior to loading of passengers or when the aircraft is empty".
However, almost two years on, Indian airlines have yet to find a way to replace this harmful method.
IndiGo expresses concern
In its plea from last week, the airline has urged the court to let it spray the disinfectant only on a "need" basis. It has claimed that the ruling from 2015 renders it incapable of saving passengers from the menace of mosquitoes.
Though he didn't directly mention the Zika virus, senior advocate Pinaki Misra, appearing for the airline, urged the NGT to amend its order to help it control the spread of mosquito-transmitted diseases in the "critical month of June", which provides conducive conditions for mosquito breeding.
The advocate substantiated his plea by mentioning 900 complaints received from different flyers against the airlines.
Airline's concern a lie?
Following the plea, the NGT chair listening to the plea has sent out notices to ministry of civil aviation, the DGCA, and the original petitioner to appear before it on June 2 for a hearing.
As pointed out in Dr Kumar's petition, even before August 2015, airlines around the globe had stopped the harmful practice of spraying pesticides while passengers were on board. But even as they moved to other methods, this practice remained prevalent in Indian airlines operating internationally.
With the matter appearing before the green court again, one wonders if IndiGo appealing to modify the original ruling is an attempt to take things back to square one.
At a time when the aviation industry in the country is growing at a rapid pace, adding thousands of new fliers every day, IndiGo's plea for modification of the ban reeks more of callousness than concern for its customers' health.
With airlines across the globe finding safer methods, surely IndiGo and other carriers operating in India can do better than resorting to spraying its customers with poisonous chemicals to tackle the mosquito menace.