MAKKAH: Authorities in Makkah have geared up to provide all the required services to an expected three million Umrah performers during the summer vacations and the holy month of Ramadan, Mayor Dr. Osama Fadhl Al-Bar said here Sunday. Talking to Saudi Gazette here, Mayor Al-Bar, who is also a member of the Central Haj Committee, said 6,000 employees working in teams round-the-clock are keeping the city fully clean as hygiene is essential to prevent an outbreak of any contagious disease. About 600 street sweeping and garbage compressor trucks have been hired to lift and dispose off the garbage. Besides, the mayoralty has provided 200 pressurized garbage containers, 45 of which have been placed around the Grand Mosque to ensure that the trash does not decompose. The garbage is routinely collected and taken to seven major land fills. Ten 10-member teams are spraying the city with insecticides to eliminate the possibility of any disease. Out of the total labor employed, 10 inspectors and 10 additional trash trucks have been kept in reserve to meet any emergency situation, Mayor Al-Bar said. Several committees, he said, have also been formed to check restaurants, grocery shops, barber shops and portable water stations to ensure that they all meet health and safety standards. Random samples are collected and tested in the mayoralty's labs, and workers' health certificate are also checked. Shopkeepers have been warned not to sell expired foodstuffs and stiff penalty awaits the offenders, the mayor ssaid. Cafeteria on wheels in six parking lots around the city are also being regularly checked. A committee supervises the vegetable markets at Jarwal and Kakiya and illegal sale of herbs and unregistered medicines is regularly monitored, Al-Bar said. Health inspectors, he said, also visit hotels and other accommodations to see that the buildings are up to the standard. Authorities are specially concerned about the safety of abattoirs and animals are regularly checked and five slaughter houses have veterinarians to check the lungs and the liver of every animal. Meet shops are also regularly inspected to ensure their compliance with the prescribed standards of hygiene. The mayoralty, he said, is responsible for the maintenance of general services, such as roads, tunnels, lighting of streets, sewage, water systems and public toilets. Six parking lots have been equipped with mosques, toilets and buses to transport visitors to the Grand Mosque, he said.
