Covid: Mumbai civic body urges citizens to 'mask up ' amid Omicron BF.7 fears
1 min read 23 Dec 2022, 10:55 PM ISTFollowing a spike in cases in China, Japan, and the United States of America, the Union government issued guidelines on 20 and 22 December
PremiumIn response to an increase in COVID-19 cases in some countries, which is thought to be caused by the BF.7 sub-variant of Omicron, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation announced on Friday that it would concentrate on implementing the vaccination drive rigorously. The civic body issued a statement urging residents to strictly abide by COVID-19 norms in order to prevent the spread of coronavirus.
Following a spike in cases in China, Japan, and the United States of America, the Union government issued guidelines on 20 and 22 December.
This prompted the BMC to say that the actions it was taking were based on those guidelines. RT-PCR tests will be performed on samples from 2% of the foreign travellers arriving at the Mumbai airport. All positive samples will be sent to the National Institute of Virology in Pune for genome sequencing, according to the statement.
The civic organisation claimed that its two hospitals, Seven Hills (1,700 beds) and Kasturba (35 beds), as well as four state-run hospitals, Cama (100 beds), St. George (70 beds), Tata (16 beds), and Jagjivan Ram (12 beds), were caring for COVID-19 patients in the city.
26 private hospitals have reserved 871 beds for the infection, and admission to all civic, state-run, and private hospitals will be supervised by 24-hour-a-day BMC war rooms that have been set up in its administrative wards.
The BMC release also stated that there is enough oxygen equipment, including PSA (pressure swing absorption) tanks, Dura Cylinders, and Liquid Medical Oxygen (LMO), to handle COVID-19 cases.
"Citizens are urged to follow COVID-appropriate behaviour, including wearing masks in public, maintaining physical distance from others, washing hands frequently with soap and water, and staying home when feeling sick," it said.
BMC urged citizens to get vaccinated and take preventative medication, emphasising that seniors and people with diabetes and high blood pressure should take the appropriate precautions.
"These actions will play a critical role in controlling the spread of COVID-19 and maintaining the health and well-being of the community," the release read.
(With inputs from PTI)
