PUBLIC HEALTH DEPARTMENT
1.0 OBJECTIVES
The Public Health Department serves the purpose and the function of the local authority through:
- Promotion of the social, economic, environmental and well-being of the local community;
- Improve the overall quality of life of people in the local community;
- Ensure that services and facilities provided by the Department are accessible and equitably distributed;
- Ensure that resources are used efficiently and effectively to best meet the needs of the local community;
- The cleaning and sweeping of all lateral, main road (classified and non classified);
- The removal from any public place or road of any dead animal and the safe disposal of any carcass or dead body of such animal;
- The removal of any physical obstruction on road reserves;
- The control, removal of advertisements;
- The collection and conveyance of waste to disposal sites or waste management facilities;
- The provision, maintenance, management and regulation of places of public places, cemeteries and auction, public markets and fairs, other than trade fairs and exhibitions which may be organized with the approval of the Minister to whom responsibility for the subject of consumer protection is assigned, pursuant to any regulations made under the Consumer Protection (Price and Supplies Control) Act or any other relevant enactment;
- The maintenance and improvement of public buildings including lavatories, open and dedicated to the use of the public, except for public buildings which are the property of the State;
- The management, maintenance and improvement of public, crematoria and cremation grounds and cemeteries within the jurisdiction of the Council’s area;
- The control of premises used for commercial, industrial, professional and other related activities;
- For the control of pollution causing a public or private nuisance;
- For the, regulation and control of the conduct of business activities, other than those regulated by other licensing authorities, within its administrative area;
- For the provision, maintenance, control and management of traffic Centre’s, including bus stations, stands for lorries and other public vehicles;
- For necessary action to ensure that the buildings and plots of land along roads are properly kept, upgrading and embellishment;
- Ensure cleaning of greenspaces under the administrative area of the Council;
- Carry out regular rodent control to ensure that there is no proliferation of rats;
- Carry out herbicide spraying along lateral roads, one metre from footpath/pavement, in the yard of all premises under the administration of the Council. The service is provided in all the villages as to prevent overgrowth of noxious vegetation;
- Carrying out sensitization campaign in company of Police De L’Environnement on use of biodegradable plastic products and initiate action jointly with the enforcement agencies.
2.0 REFUSE COLLECTION
2.1 Scavenging service
Collection and disposal of residential and commercial refuse is an essential service which is implemented by the Public Health Department for the enhancement of the living.
Services are delivered in accordance with the ever changing expectations of both the authority and the local community.
A weekly scavenging service is provided to all households in the 23 villages under this Council jurisdiction and a daily service is provided to the village centre of Central Flacq and Bel Air Riviere Seche.
The village of Trou D’Eau Douce is fully contracted out and there is daily collection of refuse and sweeping on the main roads and collection of refuse from residential zone is twice weekly. Part of the Central Flacq village is contracted out especially the commercial areas and the village centre. Sweeping and collection is twice daily.
All the scavenging lorry are equipped with a GPS tracker which enables a better control on their movement in the respective scavenging zones and increase efficiency in the output of the service.
The GPS software package has also enabled us to bring down the overtime cost, as all records of the trip history and the time of operation are available and can be consulted when authorizing claims.
2.1.1 Scavenging Lorries
The Public Health department is in possession of 19 Lorries to cater for Scavenging service within the jurisdiction of Flacq DC:
LORRY |
TYPE |
LOAG (KG)/ CAPACITY |
11Z 5 |
Compactor |
5040 |
11Z 7 |
Tipper |
2900 |
11Z 8 |
Tipper |
2910 |
11Z 9 |
Tipper |
2910 |
11Z 10 |
Tipper |
2880 |
11Z 11 |
Tipper |
2860 |
11Z 12 |
Compactor |
5630 |
11Z 13 |
Compactor |
5630 |
11Z 27 |
Tipper |
2790 |
11Z 30 |
Tipper |
4610 |
11Z 31 |
Compactor |
5520 |
11Z 32 |
Tipper |
4600 |
11Z 33 |
Compactor |
5240 |
11Z 34 |
Compactor |
5240 |
11Z 35 |
Compactor |
5290 |
11Z 49 |
Compactor |
4430 |
11Z 55 |
Tipper |
3190 |
11Z 56 |
Tipper |
3120 |
11Z 57 |
Tipper |
3100 |
2.2 Special services for specific events
2.2.1 Festival and Religious ceremonies
Special arrangements are made to cater for the additional input of work which is required during festive periods and special events like religious ceremonies. A prompt and effective program of work for collection of refuse and sweeping of the surroundings is established to give satisfaction to the public at large.
2.2.2 SPECIAL CLEANING IN THE CONTEXT OF WORLD CLEAN UP DAY
In the context of “The World Clean Up Day” and the Centralised Cleaning Coordination (3Cs) Campaign launched by the Central Government, The District Council of Flacq usually carry out a series of activities comprising of Clean Up, Embellishment programmes and Bulky Waste Collection.
Several greenspaces owned by the Council which are in an abandoned state and overgrown with noxious vegetation are cleaned and upgraded by placing pine poles, benches, planting of ornamental plants, grasses. Fresque murale painting is also carried out during the campaign.
2.2.3 Embellishment work completed in 23 villages in financial year 2022/2023
Village |
Embellishment done |
Camp Ithier |
Placing of two benches, painting of brick floor and planting of ornamental plants in Isidore Rose greenspace |
Ecroignard |
Enclosing greenspace with Pine poles and Cleaning of same. |
Central Flacq |
Placing of four benches in 4 greenspaces of the DC. |
Traffic Centre Flacq |
Construction of concrete benches around tree and placing of two benches near badamier tree |
Queen Victoria |
Placing of three benches in greenspace of Queen Victoria at Airbus road. |
Bel Air Riviere Seche |
Placing of five benches, planting of ornamental plants and lawn at La Lucie Roy Mini soccer pitch |
Olivia |
Set up concrete flower box at school lane Olivia |
Grande Riviere Sud Est |
Fencing around children playground at waterfront |
Mare la Chaux |
Set up of concrete flower box in front of football playground |
Grande Retraite |
Placing of 4 benches at Petite Retraite and Grande Retraite |
Lallmatie |
Cleaning and fencing of greenspace near Manilall Dr SSS + planting of Manilla palms in front of Belvedere football ground |
Bramsthan |
Placing of 2 benches and laying of soil in Health Track and Greenspace. |
Camp De Masque |
Placing of 4 benches and embellishment of greenspace at Morc Unite VRS, CDM. |
Camp De Masque Pave |
Fencing and embellishment of greenspace at Camp Montelou, CDM Pave. |
Clemencia |
Placing of 5 benches in SSR Garden, Clemencia and at Belle Rose. |
Laventure |
Placing of pine poles at ‘S contour S’ |
Bon Acceuil |
Painting of mural fresque in the context of World Environment Day |
Quatre Cocos |
Laying of soil and planting of ornamental plants along roadside at Palmar |
Trou D’Eau Douce |
Placing of two benches at the greenspace near football ground and one bench greenspace Debarcadere Trou D’Eau Douce |
St Julien Village |
Construction of pergola and embellishment work at the Senior Citizen Garden Morcellement Montallieu St Julien Vilage |
Brisee Verdiere |
Placing of three benches at the Village Hall of Brisee Verdiere, two benches at the Pierre Louis Garden and two benches at the Olive Garden |
Medine |
Placing of seven benches in the village |
Sebastopol |
Placing of three benches in the village and Health Track |
Poste de Flacq |
Placing of two benches at Pont Blanc and one bench at Debarcadere |
2.3 Lorry Service against payment
A paid lorry service is provided by the Council for inhabitants requiring urgent intervention for collection of refuse emanating from general cleaning of their premises or related activities. Same is charged as follows:
SCHEDULE (Regulation 20) of the District Council of Flacq (Collection and Disposal of Refuse) Regulations 2013
For the removal of refuse resulting from general cleaning of household premises.
1 lorry load or fraction of it ……………. Rs 1,000 without labour.
3.0 MARKET & FAIRS
There are one Market and two Fairs within Council’s jurisdiction which operate from 6.00 am to 6.00 pm except public holidays from 6.00 am to Noon:
SN |
Market/Fair |
Days of Operation |
Item for sale |
1 |
Fixed Market |
Every day |
Food, poultry, fish, goat, pork, beef, General Retailer, vegetable, fruits, venison, Foodcourt |
Craft market |
Every day |
Haberdashery |
|
|
|
|
|
2 |
Central Flacq Fair |
Wednesdays & Sundays |
Vegetable, Haberdashery, general retailer, fruits |
Every day except Mondays |
Haberdashery |
||
3 |
Lallmatie Fair |
Wednesdays & Saturdays |
Vegetable, Fruits, Food court, general retailer, Haberdashery |
A new market fair is under construction and is 95% on completion phase. Once it will be completed, all the sellers operating in a private fair at Bel Air Riviere Seche will be shifted to the new fair.
Besides providing a service to the community, the market and fairs are also a source of revenue for the Council.
4.0 ENVIRONMENT
4.1 Bareland
Overgrown vegetation is associated with many problems, which if ignored, can be disastrous to our community. This issue is not only the concern of the authorities but should be the advocacy of the public at large. The unused area of land that has become overgrown is the causative agent of several nuisances. Wastelands have a negative impact on surrounding properties and neighbourhood. Buyers and economic operators may be deferred by the presence of wastelands in the region as it gives rise to an anxiety of insecurity and health hazards, thus, defacing the image of the area both socially and economically. The problems which are often associated with overgrown lands are as follows:
- Hiding place for thieves and other persons with suspicious behaviour constituting a potential hazard to neighbouring inhabitants.
- Sites commonly used by drug addicts to carry out illicit activities.
- Constitutes a breeding ground for vermins, mosquitoes, rodents such as rats and mice which may be vector of diseases.
- In wet seasons, these lands tend to be breeding grounds for mosquitoes and this can significantly increase the outbreak of vector borne diseases like Chikungunya, Dengue Fever, Malaria and very recently Zika, in our community.
- In dry seasons these lands become a fire hazard which can quickly spread to adjacent properties.
- Used as illegal dumping sites, which apart from being an eyesore, may be linked to nuisances such as odour, flies (vector of disease), and feeding place for vermins and mosquitoes.
- Overgrown vegetation protruding on public pathways may obstruct inhabitants’ access to these footpaths. Moreover, they can obstruct traffic control devices thus causing a safety hazard to pedestrians and drivers.
4.2 Rodent Control
Rat bites and scratches can result in disease and rat-bite fever. Rat urine is responsible for the spread of leptospirosis, which can result in liver and kidney damage. It can also be contracted through handling or inhalation of scat. Complications include renal and liver failure, as well as cardiovascular problems.
Lymphocytic choriomeningitis (LCMV), a viral infectious disease, is transmitted through the saliva and urine of rats. Some individuals experience long-term effects of lymphocytic choriomeningitis, while others experience only temporary discomfort.
One of the most historically dangerous rat-borne diseases is the bubonic plague, also called “Black Plague,” and its variants. Transfer occurs when fleas from the rat’s bite human beings. Fleas transported on rats are considered responsible for this plague during the Middle Ages, which killed millions. From the transmission of bubonic plague to typhus and hantavirus, rat infestations can prove harmful to human health.
Rats also are a potential source of allergens. Their droppings, dander and shed hair can cause people to sneeze and experience other allergic reactions.
Diseases transmitted by rats fall into one of two categories: diseases transmitted directly from exposure to rat-infected feces, urine or bites and diseases indirectly transmitted to people by an intermediate arthropod vector such as fleas, ticks or mites.
An effective rodent control program is being carried out thrice yearly by the council in all the 23 villages to prevent the proliferation of rats. This consists of placing baits in all strategic places in the villages.
5.0 HERBICIDE SPRAYING
Herbicide spraying is carried out as per an established program of work for roadsides within our villages except classified roads as follows:
Pick up van ( On Roster Basis morning and afternoon) |
Motorised Sprayer |
Two driver ( 1 morning and 1 afternoon) |
Four Chemical sprayer Operator( 2 morning and 2 afternoon) |
The Council has the responsibility for herbiciding in 23 villages within its administrative area. Herbiciding is carried out thrice in each village which however is delayed due to rainy days, absenteeism and break down of vehicles.
6.0 CEMETERIES, CREMATION GROUNDS & CREMATORIUMS
There are 21 BGAs posted in the cemeteries and 6 Incinerator Operators. Besides effecting burials, the BGAs maintain cleanliness and are also detailed to clean cremation grounds. In June 2015, Laventure Crematorium started operation. There are 3 crematoriums in the District Council of Flacq jurisdiction that is at Laventure, Medine Camp De Masque and Beau Champs. To better serve the community and to protect our environment and reduce the felling of trees for cremation in traditional pyres, the Council is now operating three Crematoriums in Laventure, Beau Champ and Medine. Following the budget speech 2021-2022, has approved the setting up of a new incinerator at Mare La Chaux and Mare d’australia.
The time of incineration is fixed as follows; 0930hrs, 1230hrs & 1500hrs. All reservations for incinerations are made on a mobile phone meant for this specific purpose (59296103). The public is advised that the time schedule relates to the time incineration takes place and they have to reach the Crematorium Hall 30 minutes before the scheduled time.
The council has made provision for late night cremation and burials as well as late night cremation can be entertained up to 20:00hrs and late night burial up to 23:00hrs. Any early cremation or burial can also be entertained
Please find below the details of Incinerations effected:
7.0 TRAFFIC CENTRE AND PUBLIC CONVENIENCES
7.1 Central Flacq Traffic Centre
There is only one traffic centre situated in the village of Central Flacq. It is one of the main Traffic Centre in the Eastern part of the Island. Contracted services ensure the maintenance and cleaning of the tarmac and toilet blocks. The bus shelter and immediate surroundings.
7.2 Public toilet facilities
The ten public toilets are located as follows:
Public Toilet |
Opening and closing hours |
Alain Noel square, GRSE |
06:00hrs to 18:00hrs |
Waterfront, GRSE |
06:00hrs to 18:00hrs |
Nr Police Station, Lallmatie |
06:00hrs to 18:00hrs |
Toilet block, Central Flacq Traffic Centre |
06:00hrs to 18:00hrs |
Toilet Block, Laventure Football ground |
07:00hrs to 18:00hrs |
Vrindavan Avenue, St Julien village |
06:00hrs to 18:00hrs |
Trois Illot, Olivia |
06:00hrs to 18:00hrs |
Bon Accueil near Mini Soccer Pitch |
06:00hrs to 18:00hrs |
Nr ex-fire station, Central Flacq |
06:00hrs to 18:00hrs |
La Gare, Poste de Flacq |
06:00hrs to 18:00hrs |
All these sites are cleaned and maintained through contracted services.
8.0 TRADE FEES
Payment, renewal and issue of Business Registration Card for trade fees and for exempt development are under the purview of Corporate and Business Registration Department (CBRD) as from January 2020. However, ex post control are carried out by health inspector regarding trade premises and legal action are initiated against illegal operators. Clearance letters are issued by the Health department regarding business activities.
9.0 PROSECUTION
During the course of their duties, the Health Inspectorate cadre are meant to enforce the following Regulations and Acts:
- The District Council of Flacq (Fair) Regulations 2016 GN 97 of 2016
- The District Council of Flacq (Market) Regulations 2016 GN 96 of 2016
- The District Council of Flacq (Collection and Disposal of Refuse) Regulations 2013 GN 4 of 2013
- The District Council of Flacq (Traffic Centre) Regulations 2015 GN 141 of 2015
- The Local Government (fees) Regulations 2019 GN 252 of 2019
- The District Council of Flacq (Cemetery/Crematorium) Regulations 2015 as amended as per GN 171 of 2016
- Part of Environment Protection Act 2002 GN 96 0f 2009
- The Local Government Act 2011 Proclamation no 23 of 2011
- The District Council of Flacq (renting parking places for vehicles) Regulations 2017 as amended as per GN 311 of 2020