BMC to start a separate jumbo Covid centre for those returning from UK to Mumbai

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is setting up a separate a 50-bed Covid-19 centre where travellers from the United Kingdom will be quarantined for seven

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is setting up a separate a 50-bed Covid-19 centre where travellers from the United Kingdom will be quarantined for seven days. This decision comes after several returning travellers said they could not afford the cost of the mandatory institutional quarantine.

Last month, a new strain of Covid-19 was discovered in UK, following which Maharashtra set up new guidelines for all travellers from the country. (REUTERS)

Last month, a new strain of Covid-19 was discovered in UK, following which the state set up new guidelines for all travellers from the country. The amended standard operating procedure (SOP) requires all returnees from UK to be in institutional quarantine for seven days after their arrival. On the seventh day, they would undergo a reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test at their own cost to know their Covid status. On an average, institutional quarantine for seven days would cost a traveller approximately ₹50,000 and according to BMC, some passengers have provided false information to avoid being quarantined. “Many returnees are daily wage earners who cannot afford to bear the cost of institutional quarantine for seven days. So we are starting this facility with 50 beds, which will be provided to those who demand free accommodation. Once their test reports come negative for the virus, they will be discharged,” said Suresh Kakani, additional commissioner, BMC.

Following a negative RT-PCR test report, travellers must be in home quarantine for 14 days. Those who test positive will be sent to Seven Hills Hospital and the civic body will send their swabs to the National Institute of Virology (NIV) in Pune for genome sequencing, to find out if they are carrying the new strain of the virus. “We are making all possible arrangements to ensure citizens act responsibly and don’t violate quarantine rules,” said Kakani.

Health activists have questioned whether a separate centre is necessary as more than 75% of beds in existing Covid care centres (CCC) are lying vacant at present. “BMC should help decrease the rate of institutional quarantine since all passengers cannot afford to pay ₹40,000-₹50,000 from their pockets. Secondly, BMC should first utilise the existing vacant CCC facilities,” said activist Dr Ravikant Singh.

So far, eight people in Maharashtra have tested positive for the new strain of Covid-19, of which five are in Mumbai and one each in Thane, Pune and Mira-Bhayander.