Mumbai: Brihanmumbai Municipal Commissioner Iqbal Chahal has set deadlines to make operational the jumbo facilities created for COVID-19 patients in the city.
In line with Chahal’s directives, Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray inaugurated 1,026-bed dedicated COVID Health Centre (DCHC) developed within a fortnight on 1 lakh sq ft at Bandra Kurla Complex by the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Agency (MMRDA).
The BKC facility will have beds with oxygen supply and 50 ICU beds which are ready while another 100 beds will be put in place by May 25.
This is not the only one but Chahal has directed the administration to start other jumbo facilities within the stipulated timeframe. DOME Worli, being developed by BMC with 600 beds with oxygen and 50 ICU beds, and the Race Couse facility having 800 beds with oxygen supply will have to be operational by May 25.
Similarly, Chahal at his meeting held on Monday morning directed that seven facilities should add 100 ICU beds by May 25. The NESCO facility at Goregaon having 750 beds with oxygen supply and 100 ICU beds will also be made operational by May 25.
Chahal’s directives are crucial as the BMC and state government have firmed up an ambitious plan to put in place 1 lakh beds in various institutional quarantine facilities to accommodate rising COVID-19 patients. The work is being started at Mulund, Dahisar and it is likely that Worli Dairy Complex may be selected.
Further, Chahal has directed that all these facilities will have proper biomedical waste disposal mechanism in place and laundry facility at the site and they will be connected with BMC’s major hospitals for handholding support.
The staff being deployed at the jumbo facilities will be trained online on priority basis for the COVID-19 duties and the committee headed by Medical Education Director Dr Tatyarao Lahane will decide the names of deans and deputy deans for running these facilities in consultation with deans of hospitals.
The second and third-year students of nursing colleges will be appointed for jumbo facilities and training will be immediately organised for them. Their duties will be compulsory and not optional. BMC will soon issue a notification.
