MUMBAI: The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation's (BMC) battle against COVID-19 has come at a heavy cost with 55 of its warriors losing their lives.
According to the BMC, 1712 employees got infected during the course of their duties in Mumbai on various fronts, of which 1040 employees were cured and discharged.
Of the 55 deaths, it has been confirmed that 44 are due to the coronavirus while the reports of the other employees are yet to come.
“The health department is the most vulnerable in this fight. As many as 15 employees of the health department lost their lives, while six were from the fire brigade, five from the BMC security department and the rest from other departments of the BMC,” it stated in a report.
Mumbai has reported 52,445 COVID-19 patients and 1855 deaths, while 23,693 patients have been cured and discharged. There are a total of 26,897 active COVID-19 cases in Mumbai.
Apart from the BMC, the Maharashtra police have also born the brunt of the battle, losing 31 personnel. 195 police officers and 1304 other police personnel have been infected with COVID-19 across Maharashtra.
Maharashtra home minister Anil Deshmukh has said that if any COVID-19 warrior has symptoms, they should immediately report to the dedicated centre for further treatment. The Maharashtra police have also made it clear that it's not mandatory for security personnel aged above 50 or with co-morbidities to report for field work. They can instead work from police stations.
BMC officials said as Mumbai is the epicentre of COVID-19 in Maharashtra, they are more exposed to the virus. “Our staffers are taking care but those who come in regular contact with COVID-19 patients are more vulnerable like the health, fire brigade and security departments. We are happy that BMC has announced Rs 50 lakh insurance cover to its employees,” said a senior BMC official.