Covid-19 fourth wave scare: Maharashtra mulls making masks mandatory for THESE people

The Maharashtra government is mulling making face masks mandatory for suburban train commuters in Mumbai amid surge in Covid-19 cases.

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 New Delhi: As Maharashtra witnesses another surge in Covid-19 cases, Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray is considering making face masks mandatory in Mumbai suburban trains. The step was discussed on Friday (June 24) as the CM, who is battling a rebellion from party MLAs, reviewed the coronavirus situation with senior government officials. As per the official statement by the Chief Minister's Office (CMO), Thackeray held a virtual meeting with senior bureaucrats, wherein he discussed the possibility of making face masks mandatory for suburban train passengers, PTI reported. 

“The mask mandate option was discussed as a measure to curb growing cases of the novel coronavirus infection in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR),” the statement added.  The Maharashtra government had struck down the mask compulsion in April this year as the cases declined. 

"Coronavirus cases are on the rise in the state, chiefly in Mumbai, Thane, Pune, Raigad and Palghar districts. People should follow COVID-19-appropriate behaviour on their own," Uddhav Thackeray said as per the official statement. In early June, the Maharashtra Chief Minister had urged people to use face masks and get vaccinated if they want to avoid Covid-19 curbs.

Meanwhile, Maharashtra logged 4,205 new Covid-19 infections on Friday, which pushed the total tally to 79,54,445. With thee new fatalities, the death toll mounted to  1,47,896, the state health department said. Of the new cases, Mumbai alone reported 1,898 cases and the city currently has a test positivity rate of 12.70 per cent. On Thursday, Maharashtra had crossed the 5000-mark with 5,218 fresh coronavirus cases. Notably, the number of active Covid-19 cases has surpassed the 25,000-mark in the state. 

(With agency inputs)