Community toilets main reason behind the rise of coronavirus cases in Mumbai: BMC 

MUMBAI: Mumbai is one of the major hotspots for the COVID-19. Reason - community toilets, says officials.

According to Maha Vikas Aghadi minister Aslam Sheikh, the community toilets in the slum and chawl areas are the major reason behind spreading the coronavirus in Mumbai. “Mumbai has a high density of population and particularly in slums. We are providing the mobile toilet facility to these localities as per the recommendations by the central government delegations that recently visited Mumbai’s Worli and Dharavi,” said guardian minister of Mumbai city.

Mumbai has a total of 8,613 COVID-19 patients while 343 deaths were reported. The majority of COVID-19 cases are being reported from the slums and congested chawl areas of Mumbai. These areas are mainly fishermen colonies from Worli, Byculla, Mazgaon, Matunga, Dharavi, Kurla etc.

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Asia's largest slum Dharavi has reported a total of 590 cases and 20 deaths while Mahim area has got a total of 68 cases and two deaths.

Sources in BMC said that the IIT engineer had done the study of these area and sewerage line where they found the large quantum of COVID-19 virus particles in fickle materials. “We have asked to keep these community toilets clean. The BMC has deployed its additional force in the slum areas and decided to shifted the high risk and suspected patients in isolations wards,” said senior BMC official requested anonymity.

However, another senior BMC official who worked in the solid waste department said that this is the myth that has been deliberately created for some excuse if the coronavirus patients continue to increase in Mumbai.

“The BMC should admit that they have inadequate infrastructure and lack efficiency while dealing with pandemic situation therefore the cases are rising. The COVID-19 has exposed the BMC’s crumbling infrastructure,” said official requested anonymity.