Mumbai: 3 wards have over 100 Covid-19 cases, yet zero sealing

The city has been witnessing zero containment zones in slums for the past month and a half. Representation pic

Even as active cases in three civic wards are over 100, the number of sealed buildings, floors and containment zones (CZ) is zero. The L ward, that includes Kurla, the H East ward which comprises Bandra and Santacruz East, and the G north ward, with Dharavi, Dadar and Mahim, have a scattered spread of Covid, because of which there are zero sealed structures and areas.

Incidentally, all three wards have a number of slum clusters and Covid management in the wards was a huge task for the civic administration during the first wave. The focus back then was controlling the spread and isolating slum-dwellers. But the city has been witnessing zero CZs in slums for the past month and a half. With the civic body continuing its wait and watch, wards in the city are taking their own measures to ensure the spread is curbed, said officials.

Focussed isolating, testing

The BMC had decided to seal one floor of a building if it has two cases, and an entire building if it has five or more cases. The cases in the three wards not being concentrated in one area can be credited to the isolation of infected people and the focused testing of high- and low-risk contacts.

A health department official from the H east ward said, "We are closely focusing on diagnosing symptoms and testing of such people by conducting random visits to government offices, vaccination centres and hotels and restaurants. While we cannot force anyone, we are appealing to people to get themselves tested. Even as there are no sealed floors or buildings, it is not like we are relaxed as we are still getting 10-12 cases on an average daily. The only thing is, we are getting them from isolated locations as we are immediately focusing on home quarantining people and monitoring their movement."

The G north ward has seen zero cases in Dharavi in the past two days. The ward's approach towards curbing the spread has already been appreciated globally. Further, active cases in the G north ward stand at 138, and the H East ward has around 150 cases.

The L ward, too, with its considerable number of slum clusters, has managed to keep the spread isolated. Each case found in a slum is being immediately isolated and high-risk contacts are being quarantined, said an official from L ward.

150
Approx. no. of cases in H East ward