MUMBAI: Mumbai police deployed humour in its tweets along with a dose of Tom and Jerry, the legendary cat and mouse cartoon strip, to ask people to adhere to COVID-19 norms in the metropolis, especially wearing masks in public, in order to "ride out this storm together".
Indicating that violators will have the police after them, a tweet from the force said, "Please don't go out without a cause or a mask on your face. let's not make it a cat and mouse chase. We really dont like 'Tom-Tomming' about the consequences."
The tweet, with hashtags like #MasksNecessaryJerry #WhatsTheHurryJerry #TakingOnCorona, was accompanied by a 6- second video of perennial 'frenemies' Tom and Jerry, which soon went viral on social media, garnering praise for the men in khakhi for their wit.
With over five million followers, the Twitter handle of Mumbai police was soon at the centre of sizable tweet traffic, with users like Shachii Manik and Gaurav Nawathey urging citizens to listen to the force to help the city get a hold on the outbreak.
"We miss our homes and families too Mumbai. But our duty comes first - it always has and always will. We are proud to be serving and protecting this fine city. So can you do us a favour? Stay home please. Let's ride out this storm together," another tweet on Saturday evening from the metropolis' police force said.
The city reported 2,678 new coronavirus cases on Saturday, taking the city's case tally to 6,74,072, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation said.
Before this, the financial capital of the country had reported 2,877 cases on March 18, after which the cases had climbed.
As many as 3,608 coronavirus patients were discharged during the day, taking the total of recoveries to 6,10,043.
The recovery rate of the city stands at 91 per cent.
With 62 deaths, fatality count rose to 13,749, the civic body said.
33,378 coronavirus tests were carried out on Saturday, taking the tally to 56,77,780.