BMC has a containment plan for Dharavi

The 240-hectare slum pocket has 850,000 residents and a population density of 66,000 per square kilometre, making it one of the more cramped spaces in Mumbai, the world’s fifth most densely populated city.

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) said it has a containment plan in place for Dharavi, India’s largest slum, after concerns grew on Friday following a third Covid-19 case. Dharavi recorded its first death on April 1, with two more positive cases recorded in the next two days, including a surgeon on Friday.

However, BMC, which runs the city’s nodal health department, said on Friday that its officers had a containment plan in place for Dharavi almost a month ago. (Pratik Chorge/HT Photo)

The 240-hectare slum pocket has 850,000 residents and a population density of 66,000 per square kilometre, making it one of the more cramped spaces in Mumbai, the world’s fifth most densely populated city. Activists and health workers had expressed concerns over how social distancing is practically impossible in an area where an average of 10-12 people stay in each of 57,000 housing units measuring around 250 sq ft.

However, BMC, which runs the city’s nodal health department, said on Friday that its officers had a containment plan in place for Dharavi almost a month ago. “We ran a house-to-house survey to get the actual figure of the slum dwellers to keep our amenities ready,” said Suresh Kakani, additional commissioner (health), BMC. “This helped us list high-risk people living with co-morbid issues such as cardiac ailments, respiratory problems, hypertension and diabetes, among others.”

Kakani said municipal workers, armed with this data, have been scouting for vacant places to isolate patients and vulnerable individuals. HT had reported on Thursday that BMC has identified Rajiv Gandhi Sports Club in Dharavi to be turned into a 300-bed quarantine facility. Kakani said they are searching for hotels that could be turned into isolation wards.

There is also a group of 800 community health volunteers in place (HT reported this on Friday). The first batch of 200 volunteers was trained by the BMC, and they in turn are training 600 more Dharavi locals to sensitise others in the community about Sars-Cov-2, the virus that causes Covid-19. “They are not only being trained to counsel, but also to handle suspected or infected patients,” Kakani said.

Until Friday evening, over 3,000 people from Dharavi had been home-quarantined, with regular food packets being distributed by the BMC. However, there were complaints that these rations included only wheat, rice and lentils, but not oil and vegetables, making it difficult for the residents to cook.

“We are also starting health clinics where medical officers will check slum residents if they develop any symptoms,” another senior health officer told HT. He added, “The BMC is disinfecting areas in Dharavi with sodium hypochlorite. We have collaborated with locals to keep tabs on those who have been home quarantine.”

This has led to stigmatisation, many residents alleged. “Ever since the first death was reported on April 1, we have been targeted,” a local resident told HT on Friday. A private hospital allegedly cancelled the dialysis appointment of 47-year-old Amin Mansoori from Dharavi on Friday morning. “I have been visiting this hospital for the last four years. On Friday, they called me and asked me not to visit. I also have a house in neighbouring Mahim, but I couldn’t go there on account of the lockdown,” he said. “I have been trying to get a dialysis appointment at another facility, but have had no luck.”

Another resident, 28-year-old taxi driver Sunil Mishra said he lost his job on Friday. “I am not infected nor have I been home quarantined, but my employer has fired me only because I live in Dharavi,” he said. “When I pleaded, I was asked to provide a health certificate, which I could not.”