Those returning from Kumbh Mela should be quarantined for 10 days: Mumbai mayor

In the wake of the rise in Covid-19 cases being detected in Haridwar at Kumbh Mela, Mumbai Mayor Kishori Pednekar said that those returning from Kumbh Mela should be quarantined for ten days in hotels and they should be left only if they test negative

In the wake of the rise in Covid-19 cases being detected in Haridwar at Kumbh Mela, Mumbai Mayor Kishori Pednekar said that those returning from Kumbh Mela should be quarantined for ten days in hotels and they should be left only if they test negative. She also said those returning may end up spreading the infection like ‘Prasad’.

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Meanwhile, on Saturday Mumbai reported 8,811 cases followed by 51 deaths. This took the total case tally to 571,018 and the death toll to 12,301. The city’s recovery rate is 82% with 471,080 recoveries. The city’s mortality rate is 2.15% and there are 86,433 active cases in the city.

Speaking to reporters on Saturday, Pednekar said, “Those returning from Kumbh Mela may end up spreading Covid-19 like prasad, and hence we should be able to trace those returning from Kumbh Mela. We need to be religious to get strength but right now we need to develop inner strength.”

Pednekar said, “We cannot stop anyone from going, but the only thing we can do is to take caution. As a mayor, my opinion is to quarantine those returning to hotels, but there are some decisions that Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) cannot take on its own. It will require guidelines from the state or the central government.”

The statement of the mayor comes after over 2,000 tested positive for Covid in Haridwar after attending Kumbh Mela.

According to BMC officials, they will wait for the state government to issue any such guidelines for quarantining patients coming from Kumbh Mela.

A BMC official said, “We will need guidelines from the state government for quarantining patients coming from Kumbh Mela. But this exercise will also need more clarity on how to trace such travellers considering BMC does not have any data on how many have attended Kumbh Mela from Mumbai. It will be difficult to trace such patients.”