Two Mumbai 5-star hotels to offer ‘pay and stay’ facilities for coronavirus quarantine

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has tied up with two hotels near Mumbai’s international airport – Hotel Mirage and ITC Maratha – where quarantine facilities will be created. Travellers who wish to stay in the hotel can avail the services at a fixed rate.

With most citizens apprehensive about getting admitted to civic-run hospitals to get tested for the coronavirus and the small size of Mumbai flats making home quarantine tough, the civic body has tied up with two hotels where people can ‘pay and stay in quarantine’.

A worker fixes a billboard on coronavirus at Juhu in Mumbai, Monday, March 16, 2020. (Pramod Thakur / HT Photo)

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has tied up with two hotels near international airport – Hotel Mirage and ITC Maratha – where quarantine facilities will be created. Travellers who wish to stay in the hotel can avail the services at a fixed rate. Praveen Pardeshi, municipal commissioner in the press conference along with chief minister Uddhav Thackeray, said, “The rooms will be available at rates lower than the hotel’s tariffs. We are in negotiations with the hotel owners.”

Each hotel will provide rooms as per the availability. At least 1,000 beds will be set up. The BMC is also getting in touch with other hotels to create similar facilities.

Meanwhile, Thackeray on Monday appealed to people to maintain “discipline” and restrict unnecessary commute. He also faced questions about lack of cleanliness at the Seven Hills hospital, a BMC-run quarantine facility in Marol. The CM said they are looking into these complaints.

According to the state figures, 621 people have been put in self-quarantine in Mumbai so far.

“The home isolation guideline says the person ideally needs to stay in a separate room, preferably with an attached toilet. But this may not be possible in all cases as houses are small in Mumbai, barring in some cases. People will have to find ways to isolate themselves in the current scenario,” a civic official said.

If another family member needs to stay in the same room, it is “advisable” to maintain a distance of one metre between the two, the guidelines on home quarantine of the government of India reads. Such a step could leave the person at a high risk.

The BMC staff has come across instances where people have given false address at airports to prevent screenings or subsequent check-ups.

“We get a list from the airport of the people who have travelled in past 14 days. Our staff visits them at home and guides them on self-isolation and quarantine. Besides, we also visit societies to randomly check if there are people who have returned from out of India. Home isolation is important and effective in controlling the spread of the virus,” said Prashant Gaikwad, assistant municipal commissioner, D-ward (Malabar Hill).

A BMC official said people are not keen on using civic-run facilities as they fear they could contract some other ailments, and social boycott from the housing society and neighbours.

“There is a general fear and trust deficit when it comes to using civic-run facilities. When our squads visited some homes, people denied having visited a foreign country or symptoms. They did not want to engage with the staff. Senior officers had to be roped in to explain the situation to them,” he said.

Anup Kumar Yadav, director of National Health Mission (NHM), said people who find it difficult to quarantine themselves can use state-run facilities.

“We have prepared guidelines where the person will have to restrict himself to a room, use a separate toilet, maintain distance of three feet, avoid gathering, etc. In case, it is not possible, they can use state-run facilities,” Yadav said.