With 42 cases in Maharashtra, it’s a ‘state-versus-virus’ war

With the number of COVID-19 cases touching 42, Maharashtra’s anti-coronavirus battle became even fiercer on Wednesday with more testing and quarantine facilities, besides all-out efforts implemented to avoid the mind-boggling challenge of keeping crowds at bay in public areas and at workplaces.

Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray reviewed the situation today with all departments and said a limit of 50 percent staff will be implemented in all government departments.

He said the number of suburban trains and buses services will be reduced, standees won’t be permitted and those seating would be kept at safe distance, etc as measures.

He urged restive people of Mumbai – with 17 million people and the state with a population of nearly 12 crore – not to panic or stock up essentials as there is sufficient availability of everything including medical items.

However, Thackeray said the government plans to implement shift hours for retail shops/markets in different localities in urban areas.

After making repeated appeals for ‘work-from-home’ (WFH), the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai has now warned of punitive action against those private companies which fail to implement 50 percent staff norms or disallow WFH.

Health Minister Rajesh Tope announced that from tomorrow, another two coronavirus testing labs will start operating at KEM Hospital and Kasturba Hospital in Mumbai and BJ Medical College Pune, and in the next few days a total of eight more laboratories shall be opened including Haffkine Institute Mumbai. They will test around 250 samples daily.

“We may permit even private labs to take up the testing but after taking all the necessary permissions and giving them the proper infrastructure,” Tope said, after visiting the National Institute of Virology in Pune today.

He said that there are over 800-beds for quarantine in Pune and permission will be given to open quarantine facilities in private hospitals too.

In Mumbai, the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai permitted several private hospitals to start isolation wards with 88 beds. They include: Hinduja Hospital (20), Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital (17 beds), Lilavati (15), Raheja (12), Jagjivan Ram WR (10), Jaslok (5), Bombay Hospital (4), H. N. Reliance, Gurunanak, St. Elizabeth hospitals (2 each),

In Mumbai, Minister for Food & Civil Supplies swooped on some pharmacies following complaints of blackmarketing of masks, sanitisers and other stuff. He has issued instructions to deal with such willful offenders in the sternest manner.

The MCGM has started imposing a hefty Rs.1000 fine for people found spitting in public, the Bhiwandi Police in Thane slapped a case against Arihant Mattresses for making false claims of ‘anti-coronavirus’ beddings, and action is being taken at various levels against those spreading fake messages on social media.

Local organisations, like the Bahujan Vikas Aghadi legislators – father-son duo of Hitendra Thakur and Kshitij Thakur – are distributing masks among bus commuters in Palghar and disinfect all public buses for public safety.

Meanwhile, Mumbai and Pune – the two worst-hit with maximum coronavirus cases – appeared to be pausing in their steps with visibly reduced commuters in trains and buses, though the number of private vehicles on roads and highways didn’t show a noticeable decline so far.

All beaches in Mumbai, Thane, Palghar, Raigad, Ratnagiri, Sindhudurg are near-deserted, as also prominent hill stations in the Western Ghats, resorts, wildlife sanctuaries, tourist destinations, etc.

All major places of worship like temples, churches, mosques-mausoleums, gurudwaras have shut doors for devotees while some religious organisations and sects are now offering ‘online’ prayers, namaz, etc to keep crowds and the virus away.

The state has already elapsed into partial shutdown with all schools, colleges, malls, theatres, cinemas, gyms, swimming pools, closed till March 31.

Now, the locks are down on recreational activities like clubs, pubs, discos, bars, paan-cigarette vendors and some restaurants in Mumbai, Pune, Thane for varying periods as the state versus virus battle intensifies.-IANS/Quaid Najmi