BKC’s Covid-19 facility suffers rain damage; Opposition seeks cost report

While the city escaped a major threat from Cyclone Nisarga, the makeshift Covid-19 hospital at the Bandra-Kurla Complex, constructed by the Mumbai Metropolitan Region

While the city escaped a major threat from Cyclone Nisarga, the makeshift Covid-19 hospital at the Bandra-Kurla Complex, constructed by the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) reportedly suffered damages due to the strong winds coupled with heavy rain on Wednesday.

HT Image

As many as 200 patients were shifted from this Covid-19 hospital to the treatment centre at NSCI Exhibition Centre in Worli and Sion hospital, on Tuesday, a day before the cyclone was expected to make landfall.

“We inspected the facility site and only the outer compound wall, made of makeshift material, came off. There was no damage to the interior of the facility,” said Suresh Kakani, additional municipal commissioner.

Several videos of the damage caused to the BKC facility were shared on social media on Wednesday, which showed the grounds flooded. MMRDA had constructed the makeshift hospital in 10 days at the MMRDA grounds in BKC for treatment of Covid-19 patients and had handed over the site to the BMC last month.

“Admission of patients to the BKC facility can be restarted from Thursday evening. We are also planning another facility which is near the first one. This will also be a 1,000-bedded facility.”

On Tuesday, MMRDA tweeted, “After #CycloneNisarg, work restarts for second Covid facility at BKC. Nothing happened to Covid hospital 1 and 2 during Cyclone though as a matter of abundant precaution, patients were shifted.”

Opposition leaders are now slamming the authorities over the decision to build the makeshift hospital on open ground.

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA Ameet Satam has written to MMRDA commissioner RA Rajeev, seeking all details of the makeshift structure. “There are several irregularities in this makeshift hospital which the authority is trying to hide,” she wrote. “We have been told that a whopping ₹ 8,000 was spent per square foot to construct this facility. I would request you to give me details of the item-wise cost involved in making the facility and also the details of the contractor who made this facility,” the letter said.

On June 2, Kirit Somaiya, former BJP MP, tweeted, “I am upset, yet monsoon to start, BKC corona center just started & now with the worry of monsoon, government compelled to shift all patients of BKC to other places !!!!...”