BMC gears up to tackle second wave of coronavirus infection in Mumbai

Mumbai Municipal Commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal, on Monday, November 9, 2020, said that Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is fully prepared to handle the second wave of coronavirus outbreak. The festival of Diwali is just a few days away, and keeping the possibilities in mind, the BMC has made strict rules to ensure safety. Precautions are being taken considering the festivities and celebrations. 

Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, while addressing the state on Sunday, November 8, 2020, asked the citizens to ensure a safe pollution-free Diwali, thereby requesting them to avoid crackers this year. Taking note of the same, officials from the BMC have banned firecrackers this year, as experts claim it could worsen the health of many people due to the pollution it would create.

Furthermore, Chahal said the risk of coronavirus infection would increase further if citizens did not follow the rules, and to avoid the same, citizens are requested to comply with the norms of social distancing and other aspects like wearing masks and using hand sanitizers. 

Adding more, he said that the municipal administration is also ready to tackle the second wave of COVID-19 infection, and as precautionary steps, the departments have also kept sufficient beds ready across several facilities in the city.

While the number of coronavirus patients are decreasing, one must note that following the rules imposed by the WHO and the respective governments will only benefit the well-being of the citizens, by making sure that the number does not increase again. 

Teams have been asked to take strict action against those who avoid wearing masks in public, and officials have been asked to make a note of 25,000 such people every day. The target has increased to the previous figures, where Chahal asked the officials to impose a fine on a minimum of 10,000 people per day.

A meeting regarding the same was held in the morning on Monday, November 9, in the presence of selected BMC officials, Mumbai Police and others. Officers from the Police security will be present across the city to control crowd, and will also ensure no sales of firecrackers or no celebrations with crackers on the day of Diwali.