While the entire district machinery is on the fast track mode to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus in the twin-city, sleuths of the Thane (rural) police have booked an unruly mob of around 30 people including women on charges of creating hurdles for an on duty team of medical personnel attached to the Mira Bhayandar Municipal Corporation (MBMC). The team had been obstructed from performing COVID-19 related duties.
The incident was reported from the Navi Khadi village located in the coastal belt of Uttan near Bhayandar on Tuesday. The medical personnel had gone there in order to shift three members of a family to the COVID-19 Care Center in Bhayandar for treatment after they tested positive for the infection.
However, a mob gathered in the village which not only stopped the medical team from taking the patients away for treatment, but also tried to instigate and misguide others by spreading rumours that the labs were issuing fake positive results to fleece money from people.
Most of the rumour mongers were not following physical distancing norms. Nor were they wearing face masks for protection. It was only after the intervention of the uniformed police personnel that the medical team managed to take away the patients.
“We have booked Brian Kasugar, Ripon Garya and 25 to 30 yet-to-be identified people under the relevant section of the IPC, Disaster Management Act, and Epidemic Act and provisions of the stringent Maharashtra Covid-19 Rules,” confirmed, Assistant Police Inspector Satish Nikam.
However, nobody has been arrested yet as further investigations are underway.
More than 30 positive cases have surfaced in the coastal areas of Uttan near Bhayandar in the past few days.
