|
Cheap prayer mats causing respiratory infections
ISLAMABAD: Low quality carpets and rugs in mosques raise chances of respiratory infections among the regular mosque-goers, a doctor has told Daily Times.The doctor said the chances of catching throat infection, asthma and skin and respiratory allergies would be higher in the people having close contact with the fibres of cheap quality carpets or rugs. Not only in the mosques but the poor quality carpets in any place like houses are also dangerous to human health, said Dr Rizwan Qazi of the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS). I am not trying to say that people should stop going to mosques. The purpose of my observation is that such carpets should be removed from mosques, he said. He said poor quality carpets and rugs could cause serious respiratory infections. He said mosque goers, when in position of Sajda or prostration, inhaled dangerous particles from carpets. Those who are already suffering from respiratory diseases should better avoid contact with carpets, he said. Referring to the example of Haj pilgrims, he said the people with or without respiratory problems could also use masks to avoid carpets hazards. But the trend of wearing masks is not very common. Besides, a healthy man would not use mask while going to the mosque, he said. He said Chatai, a kind of mate made of leaves, could better be used instead of carpets and rugs in mosques. He said Chatai was not only cheap in price, but it was also safer for use as compared to the poor quality carpets. Several mosques in the federal capital pose threats to human health because they use poor quality carpets. A mosque, situated in street 47 of Sector G-11/2, is one such example. The poor quality of the carpets in this mosque can easily be seen. While breathing in Sajda in the mosque, one can feel he is inhaling the fibres into his lungs. The immediate reaction is itching in the nose. When the matter was brought to the notice of khatib of the mosque, he said except few no worshiper ever complained about the carpets. He dismisses the arguments of doctors against the use of poor quality carpets. He said the mosque administration did not have enough money to remove the old and buy new and expensive carpets. He said that Chatai could also not be used in the mosque because it was difficult to offer prayer on Chatai during the winter. Athar Saeed Dil, a spokesman of the Health Ministry, said no specific guidelines were issued to the mosques to avoid the use of substandard synthetic carpets. He said no mosques-specific discussion took place in the ministry in this regard. He said the Health Ministry frequently issued general guidelines and appeals to people that they should avoid the use of synthetic carpets. He said the ministry especially focussed on the issue in the months of March and April, when the allergy season is on its peak. He advised people to use vacuum cleaners instead of brooms to clean the synthetic carpets. He added that the vacuum cleaners suck not only the dust particles but also the fibres of the synthetic carpets, reducing the threats of respiratory infections. An official of the Auqaf Department, who requested not to be named, said his department ensured proper cleanliness at the mosques in its jurisdiction. He, however, stated that the issue of the synthetic carpets was never discussed. He said there were a number of illegal mosques in the federal territory and these mosques did not care for cleanliness. The problem of lack of cleanliness and the one you are mentioning (carpets issue) are quite common there (in illegally built mosques), he said. He said the Auqaf Department could not take any action against the illegally built mosques for ignoring cleanliness because these mosques were not registered under any law of the land. He said, If, for instance, we impose a penalty against any illegal mosque on account of poor cleanliness, it mean that we have recognised its existence in our territory. Such mosques should either be recognised or removed. Posted by: john 2006-09-03 |
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=164906 |