Experts say daily numbers unlikely to rise beyond 600, advise citizens to mask up and stay at home in case of cold, cough or sore throat
Testing for Covid at Dadar station
Wear a mask and stay at home if you have a cold, cough or sore throat. This is the advice doctors have for citizens as the city sees a rise in Covid cases once again. In the past seven days, Coronavirus infections in Mumbai have gone by about 36 per cent, as per BMC data. Experts and a member of the state’s Covid Task Force member said the daily numbers may not rise beyond 600.
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Dr Harshad Limaye, senior consultant, internal medicine and infectious diseases, Nanavati Hospital, said, “We have witnessed about 35 per cent to 36 per cent increase in Covid patients in the past few days but the number of patients still remains low and this statistical change is not alarming at the moment. However, considering the festive season and the likelihood of large social gatherings, people should follow masking and sanitisation practices thoroughly. Most importantly, if one experiences any symptoms such as cold, cough, throat irritation, etc. they should self-restrain from going into large crowds and avoid social contact to limit the spread of infection.”
Following a surge in May, the numbers had dipped by July, with the city reporting 200-250 cases or even fewer a day. But infections rose this month. Between August 2 and 8, the city reported 2,977 new cases out of 61,275 samples tested, registering a 36 per cent rise over the previous seven days. The city reported 1,889 cases from July 26 to August 1.
Amid the drop in tests, the Centre recently wrote to the state raising concerns about it and cases going up in a few districts. Dr Vasant Nagvekar, co-director of infectious diseases at Sir HN Reliance Foundation Hospital and also a member of the state Covid Task Force, said, “We are getting milder cases, so there’s nothing to worry about. The cases will linger around the current figure of 500 to 600. As festive seasons are around, people need to take a few precautions like wearing a mask and avoiding crowd.”
As of Tuesday, the city had 2,977 active cases of which 260 needed hospitalisation. While only 13 patients are on oxygen support, 114 are being treated at civic-run SevenHills Hospital. Dr Smita Chavan, additional dean of SevenHills, said, “It will be difficult to predict if the cases will go up or stay like this. But most of the patients have mild or moderate symptoms while many patients who are in ICU take a transfer from private hospitals.”
So far, the state government hasn’t revised its norms to deal with Covid. Additional Chief Secretary Dr Pradeep Vyas told mid-day, “As of now there is no change in Covid protocols. Testing, tracking, and treatment are going on and we are also putting efforts to make sure everyone gets the vaccine.”
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