BMC announces fresh Covid-19 restrictions for Mumbai, in addition to Maharashtra govt curbs

Mumbai Covid-19 cases: The fresh guidelines have been issued by the BMC in wake f a spike in number of Covid-19 cases in Mumbai.

The BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) on Tuesday announced fresh set of curbs for Mumbai, which has been battered by the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic. The new guidelines have been clamped in addition to the stringent measures announced by the state government on Sunday, the civic body said.

A BMC healthcare worker takes a swab sample during Covid-19 screening, at Kherwadi in Mumbai on Tuesday.(Satish Bate/HT Photo)

The latest BMC guidelines say that all beaches in the city will remain shut till April 30 in the wake of increasing Covid-19 cases, its chief Iqbal Chahal said.

Chahal reiterated that every housing society having more than five cases will be declared a micro containment zone, and a police personnel deployed outside the gate of that society.

The BMC has also directed private laboratories to ensure the 24-hour turn around time for declaring results of those testing positive for Covid-19, further asking laboratories to ensure that the reports are first given to the civic body and handed over to the patient the next day.

The BMC chief has also directed private hospitals to undertake tests using rapid antigen kits only on symptomatic patients, and also ensure that no tests are done using the rapid antigen kits without taking permission from the BMC.

Mumbai is among the 10 districts in the country with the highest number of new Covid-19 cases, the Union health ministry said. At a press conference on Tuesday, Union health secretary Rajesh Bhushan said that Maharashtra, Punjab and Chhattisgarh still remain states of maximum concern.

On Monday, Mumbai reported 9,879 fresh cases and 21 fatalities in a 24-hour timespan, according to bulletin released by state health department.

The Centre has constituted 50 high-level multi-disciplinary public health teams and deployed them to districts reporting a surge in cases and mortality in these states, Bhushan said.

Alarmed by the huge rise in cases over the last few days, the Maharashtra government on Sunday announced a weekend lockdown and night curfew during the weekdays from Monday to April 30, in addition to a slew of other restrictions like the closure of private offices, theatres and salons.

The weekend lockdown will start from 8pm on Fridays and last till 7am on Mondays. Besides, prohibitory orders will be in force during the daytime on weekdays, the office of chief minister Uddhav Thackeray said in a statement.