Every morning when I wake up in our Nirvana to the sound of bird calls and am welcomed by lush greenery all around, I thank my stars that we decided to call Nir-vana home. I head out for my morning walk enjoying our green parks, the tall trees and colourful gardens. Many walkers are out, and we exchange smiles and greetings while walking past. What a lovely way to start my day
Walks stopped when Mother Nature brought down heavy non-stop rain. Creepers grew and every leaf looked scrubbed clean. However, with this monsoon rain, came diseases and dengue infected our neighbourhoods. Requests for papaya leaves were shared on our AG WhatsApp group and neighbours readily shared what they had. Doors and windows were tightly shut, and mosquito repellent dhoops and machines flew off the shelves as they were used night and day. We became vigilant, making sure our flower pots or buckets had no stagnant water. After every rainfall we rushed to our terraces to clear water stuck there due to drain clogging. As we checked our terraces, we also inspected the terraces of our neighbours’ homes, especially the vacant ones and homes of those who were travelling. Quickly, the addresses of these homes were shared on our AG WhatsApp group. But, who was going to get into these closed homes, and get their terraces cleaned, the heavy vegetation cleared away?
This is where staying in Nirvana proved to be so special. Fumigation started, on the greenery beside our roads, parks, and front lawns of homes. The fumigator was accompanied by our committee representative who called me and specially asked if I wanted the back lawn also fumigated. My son was arriving the very next day for his annual holiday with us, and I had been so worried if it was safe for him to come, but this caring act put my fears to rest. However, the dengue numbers were still not declining. More had to be done, there was a need of great urgency. The response was prompt. The committee took note of every address shared in all Nirvana groups and made the effort of personally calling the owners and getting their permission to collect keys from their neighbours/ relatives’ homes. A committee member accompanied the team in each block and monitored the sending people up to the terraces to clean and clear the drains and let the trapped water drain out. This brave team of people even fumigated the back gardens and got the extra growth cleared.
The dengue numbers have come down thanks to the efforts of these wonderful brave men who fumigated, drained the stagnant water, and cleared the greens, putting their own lives at risk of infection. Huge thanks also to the vigilant residents and the committee members who made it their mission to help the Nirvana residents.
