Mumbai Covid-19 infections near 2,000, 5 new cases in Dharavi

Mumbai’s total case and death toll stood at 1,896 and 114. Five of those cases and one death were recorded from Dharavi, home to roughly 800,000 people.

The number of Covid-19 cases in Mumbai nudged 2,000 on Wednesday with the city’s civic body saying the growing numbers are a result of extensive testing even as the risk of infection in the crowded slum of Dharavi worried authorities.

Aerial view of Dharavi which has been identified as the containment zone during the nationwide Covid-19 lockdown in Mumbai on Tuesday. (ANI file photo)

Mumbai’s total case and death toll stood at 1,896 and 114. Five of those cases and one death were recorded from Dharavi, home to roughly 800,000 people. The man who died was 55 years old and had attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in New Delhi last month, said officials. The event has emerged as the biggest hot spot of the disease in India.

Maharashtra, the worst hit by the outbreak in India, recorded 232 new cases to reach a total of 2916. One hundred and eighty seven people have died in the state.

An analysis by Hindustan Times showed that the number of cases in the city jumped up by 750 (from 1,146 cases on April 11 to 1,896 on April 15), within five days, according to state health department data. In the same period, the death toll also rose from 76 to 114.

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) claimed the rise was the result of more testing. According to the BMC’s data, between April 1 and April 12, the civic body tested 1,000-1,500 samples daily. The numbers of samples tested was 7,712 on April 1, which went up to 24,279 tests by April 12. Across the state, the number of tests rose to 46,588 on April 14 from 6,331 on April 1.

Dr Sanjay Mukherjee, secretary, Maharashtra Medical Education and Drugs Department, said, “Maharashtra now has 17 government and 15 private labs, making our testing capacity the highest in the country.”

A Brihanmumbai Electricity Supply and Transport (BEST) employee was declared dead late Tuesday night. He had tested positive on April 1, and had no international travel history. Five close contacts of the employee were tested and found negative.

Ten more medical staff of Bhatia Hospital tested positive on Wednesday, taking the count to 35, a spokesperson for the hospital confirmed.

“All staff members are being treated at Bhatia Hospital and they are doing well,” the spokesperson said.

After four doctors from Bombay Hospital tested positive, Bombay Hospital conducted tests on 120 staff members. Gautam Bhansali, consultant physician, Bombay Hospital, said, “We had tested around 36 doctors on Tuesday, after one tested positive on Monday. Three have tested positive. We have tested 120 more staff members.”

Municipal commissioner Praveen Pardeshi on Wednesday issued an advisory for protection of senior citizens. The advisory asked medical officers to visit the homes of senior citizens and advise them to avoid going out even to buy essentials and rely on their neighbours, if they stay alone.

Meanwhile, a 29-year-old woman from Worli, who had tested positive, killed herself in the hospital. The G/South Ward, which includes Worli and Prabhadevi, also has the highest number of positive cases in the city, 360.