There’s full transparency in Covid-19 figures: BMC

A BMC health worker takes a swab of a passenger for RAT, at Dadar station, (w) on Sunday. Pic/Ashish Raje

The civic body on Sunday sought to put to rest allegations that it was hiding Covid-19 cases and deaths in the city for glory. The BMC, in a statement, stated that it is maintaining complete transparency in reporting the data.

The BJP, which is leaving no stone unturned to target the Shiv Sena that leads the BMC, has accused the civic body of hiding daily numbers. However, the BMC stated that the numbers are true according to the Covid-19 tests carried out so far.

The guidelines of the World Health Organization and the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) have been followed in reporting the number of Covid-19 casualties and deaths due to other causes. The fatality rate in the city has been below 1 per cent since January this year, and the city is seeing a drop in daily cases.

Recently, former chief minister Devendra Fadnavis alleged that Mumbai's Covid-19 figures were being suppressed, while BJP MLA Ameet Satam claimed that the death rate in the city was very high. Many on social media platforms also claimed that the city's numbers were seemingly untrue.

The BMC stated that it increased number of tests when the second wave hit, so the numbers of Covid-19 cases are not at all hidden from citizens.