1. Bombay HC to Govt: ‘Give Details Of Steps Taken to Provide Shelter, Ration to Migrants’
The Bombay High Court on Friday directed the state government to inform it about the steps taken for the well-being of the migrants and the underprivileged to protect them from COVID-19.
The court sought a report on steps the government had taken to provide temporary shelter and medical facilities to migrants stuck at different districts in Maharashtra without daily wages. Justice A A Sayed was hearing a PIL filed by NGO Sarva Hara Jan Andolan, seeking various reliefs for migrant workers and underprivileged persons across state.
(Source: Indian Express)
2. Door-to-Door Survey at Heart of Govt’s Dharavi Strategy to Tackle COVID-19
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) said it has a containment plan in place for Dharavi, India’s largest slum, after concerns grew on Friday following a third person was detected with the coronavirus disease (Covid-19). Dharavi recorded its first death on April 1, with two more positive cases recorded in the next two days, including a surgeon on Friday.
The 240-hectare slum pocket has 850,000 residents and a population density of 66,000 per square kilometre, making it one of the more cramped spaces in Mumbai, the world’s fifth most densely populated city according to United Nations. Activists and health workers had expressed concerns over how social distancing is practically impossible in an area where an average of 10-12 people stay in each of the 57,000 housing units measuring around 250 sq ft.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
3. COVID-19: Maharashtra to Use Blood Samples Instead of Swabs for Early Detection
The Centre has allowed Maharashtra to conduct rapid COVID-19 tests to expedite the detection of COVID-19 cases, State Health Minister Rajesh Tope said on Thursday.
The State government will use blood samples instead of swabs in rapid tests for detection, Mr. Tope said. Talking to reporters after Prime Minister Modi held a video conference with Chief Ministers of all the States to discuss ways to check the spread of COVID-19, Mr. Tope also said that around 3.25 lakh migrant labourers are in State-run shelters across Maharashtra.
(Source: The Hindu)
4. 900k People, 241 Zones: Mumbai’s Mega Plan to Fight COVID-19
The worst Covid-19-affected city in India has activated 474 teams across 241 containment zones and checked at least 900,000 people as part of its plan to stop the spread of the Sars-Cov-2 virus through human-to-human contact. As of 9 pm on April 3, Mumbai had 278 positive cases and 19 deaths – the highest for any Indian city – according to data released by Maharashtra’s nodal state health department.
Each team comprises two or three Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) staffers, and is mandated to identify a containment zone, conduct door-to-door surveys, and get a questionnaire answered by all residents in that zone. In Mumbai, a containment zone means at least one person from the area tested positive for Covid-19. The patient’s family and the building are identified as a cluster zone and at least four to five adjoining buildings on all sides are mapped in the containment zone, depending on the area’s population density. The greater the population density, the wider the radius of containment zone, a BMC health official explained on Friday.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
5. 60 KM Away from Mumbai: Shutting Down of Local Trains Has Left 400-odd Visually Impaired Residents of Vangani Jobless
For the 400-odd strong community of visually-impaired people living in Vangani near Ambernath, the COVID-19 induced lockdown has created severe problems for their sustenance.
Over the last three decades, many visually-impaired people have flocked to Vangani, located 60 km west of Mumbai, creating a colony of residents who would find sustenance by either hawking trinkets on the suburban train system or seeking alms.
The complete shutdown of the Mumbai suburban train system due to the national lockdown has meant that many members of the community, including the likes of 43-year-old Balasaheb Baburao Shinde, are finding it difficult to survive.
(Source: Indian Express)
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