BMC issues fresh guidelines for sealing of buildings in Mumbai as COVID-19 returns

Mumbai: Mumbai civic body - Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) – has issued fresh guidelines for sealing of the buildings in the city if a large number of COVID-19 cases are detected among the occupants of the flats in those buildings.

As per the new BMC guidelines, the whole building or a wing would be sealed if more than 20 per cent of the occupied number of flats in the building or wing has COVID-19 patients. The new BMC guidelines will come into effect from today, that is January 4, 2021.

"With the continuous threat of rising cases of COVID-19 in the city of Mumbai in the past few days and detection of Variant of Concern (VoC) Omicron suggesting an increase in transmissibility, earlier guidelines issued on March 1, 2021, for sealed buildings stands revised," the order copy said. 

The whole building or a wing of the building complex/ society shall be sealed if more than 20 per cent of the occupied number of flats in the building or a wing of the building complex/ society is affected with COVID-19 patients, it added.

What do the BMC guidelines say?

BMC further notified that the patient and contacts shall strictly follow the current guidelines of home isolation and hygiene etiquettes while in home quarantine. "Patient/s shall be isolated for at least 10 days from onset of symptoms/testing (in case of asymptomatic patients) and no fever for continuous three days," it said.

High-risk contacts shall be home quarantined for seven days. They shall be tested on the fifth to seventh day or immediately if they turn symptomatic and further protocols shall be followed based on their test results. 

Due care shall be taken by the building managing committees to ensure supplies of food, medicines and essentials to the families in quarantine. The de-sealing decision of the building/wing could be taken at the respective ward level.

COVID cases rise in Maharashtra

Meanwhile, Maharashtra reported 12,160 fresh COVID-19 cases and 11 deaths in the last 24 hours, informed the state health department on Monday. As per the health bulletin, the active cases in the state stand at 52,422. The case fatality rate is 2.1 per cent.