Source of 12,511 cases in slums could not be traced: Mumbai civic body data

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s (BMC) contact-tracing in slums has revealed that 12,511 Covid cases in slums are not among high-risk contacts of other positive cases

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s (BMC) contact-tracing in slums has revealed that 12,511 Covid cases in slums are not among high-risk contacts of other positive cases. The source of infection in the case of such patients has not yet been traced. This is as per data between June 3, 2020, and March 14, 2021, reveals BMC’s Covid-19 dashboard.

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In slums, BMC traced an average of 13 high-risk contacts per positive patient. The norm set by municipal commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal last year is tracing up to 15 high-risk contacts per positive patient and moving them to institutional quarantine facilities, to break the chain of the spread of Covid-19. So far, BMC has moved 1,61,830 high-risk contacts from slums to quarantine facilities between June and March 14.

A senior official from the health department said, “These are patients who tested positive for Covid-19 but were not high-risk contacts of positive patients. Effectively, it only means they would have come in contact with a Covid-19 positive patient, but were not identified as a high-risk contact during BMC’s enquiries and contact tracing efforts, as they were probably not immediate family or neighbours.”

The highest number of positive cases in slums who are not high-risk contacts of positive patients are 1,668 cases from the K/West ward of Andheri (West), followed by 1,551 in the L ward of Kurla, and 1,511 of G/North ward, which has Dharavi under its jurisdiction.

The K/West ward has traced a total of 23,412 high-risk contacts of cases in slums so far to send to institutional quarantine facilities, L ward has traced and quarantined 28,179 high-risk contacts of cases in slums, and G/North ward has traced and quarantined 20,462 high-risk contacts in slums.

Until Friday, 5,740,196 Mumbaiites have completed quarantine, of which, 658,385 have completed home quarantine. Presently, 984 are in institutional quarantine centres.

Mumbai has 122 containment zones and 1,211 sealed buildings.

On Saturday, Mumbai reported 5,867 Covid cases, the lowest since March 31, 2021, when Mumbai reported 5,399 cases.

On Saturday, Mumbai reported 71 deaths. This has taken the tally to 622,146, and the toll to 12,726. There are 78,226 active cases in Mumbai at present.

The highest number of cases reported in Mumbai in a single day so far was 11,206 cases on April 4.