Amid rapidly rising coronavirus positive cases in Mumbai, the BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation on Friday has deployed seven additional municipal commissioners in seven separate zones with a mandate to improve the doubling rate of coronavirus cases to 20 days from the present 10 days by May 17 in the city.
As reported by FPJ on Friday, they will have to personally visit their zones every day from morning till 2 pm and attend office after 3 pm. They have been directed to mobilize staff to get the works entrusted to them from all possible sources. The order was issued by Praveen Pardeshi few hours before he was transferred as the additional chief secretary in the urban development department.
Pardeshi issued order after the union health ministry joint secretary Luv Agarwal in his presentation on Thursday painted a bleak picture of the coronavirus crisis in Mumbai. He during his video conference with Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray had estimated that there will be 41,000 COVID positive cases by May 27 and warned that BMC will face shortage of health infrastructure including ICU beds, oxygen, ventilators and quarantine and isolation centres. He also suggested that the senior officers be appointed to step up coronavirus containment strategy and establish small clusters which will be combination of lanes and bylanes where entry of members of public will be prohibited.
Based on Agarwal’s suggestion, BMC will increase the sanitisation in slum areas and public toilets will be cleaned five times instead of twice a day. The civic body will rope in community leaders so that those who have cured from COVID 19 do not face stigma.
