The year began on a positive note with an assent on the vaccines, but, will the last nine months of sheer hard work and resilience of the front liners bite the dust with the rising numbers? Let’s take a look.
All these months, amidst the highs and lows of the COVID-19 numbers, India found itself battling the virus positively, but, ever since the vaccine has rolled out, cases have been increasing, across cities, especially, Mumbai. A time when the vaccine has merely reached just the essential healthcare workers, the rise in COVID-19 cases feels nearly a nightmare to the mass inoculation drive that’s scheduled in the coming months.
Talking about Mumbai, the city that never sleeps, slept for about 9 months due to the pandemic. Well, the city once again became whole with a green signal to ease restrictions on travelling by Mumbai’s very own lifeline, the Mumbai Locals.
But again, the question rises, was this the right time to give it a go?
Ever since the Maharashtra Government permitted all passengers to travel by locals on January 29, 2021, Mumbai’s cases have spiked.
Mumbai in a week
Last Wednesday, the city recorded 721 Covid-19 cases, being the highest single-day spike in the last 40 days. The following Sunday, the state recorded 4092 fresh Covid-19 cases across the state. With the addition of these latest cases, Maharashtra’s tally now stands at 4.15 Lakh, way higher than that of any other state or Union territory in the country. Its death toll, meanwhile, reached 51,631 after 40 people lost their lives to Covid on Wednesday.
Chembur, Mumbai’s latest hotspot is soon considering going under a lockdown after the ward reported 15 to 20 positive cases on a daily basis. The daily Covid-19 growth rate of the ward is 0.28%, higher than the city’s average growth rate of 0.14%. Since then, the BMC has imposed a few restrictions in the ward.
As of Thursday, February 18, Maharashtra has reported over 5,000 cases, with a sizable number from Akola and Nagpur, as stated by the Health Department. Later evening, the BMC announced that it would take stricter actions on individuals flouting Covid norms. They’ve also decided to raid auditoriums, restaurants, marriage halls, etc, to ensure guidelines have been religiously followed. Mumbai Mayor Kishori Pednekar also took to the streets and appealed to the people with folded hands to follow all the Covid-19 protocols in the public interest. “I appeal to you all, do not force the government to impose another lockdown. Please follow all the protocols strictly. It’s in your hands to avoid another lockdown,” the Mayor appealed.
People have dropped their guards, and group infections not only across the city but across the country have been witnessed. People have stopped wearing masks, or wear them incorrectly, which does them no good. Sanitisation and other SOP’s have gone for a toss.
Demand meets supply, the basis of economics, and talking about sanitizers and masks, did you know that in the last three months, companies have either halted or reduced their outputs of masks, disinfectants, and sanitizers according to a report by the Economic Times.
Dabur’s chief executive Mohit Malhotra, who jumped the bandwagon like many other FMCGs when the pandemic kicked in, now says that Dabur now considers exiting the sanistiers and other disinfectant products it had launched in mid-2020.
Grofers spokesperson states that the online sales of sanitizers dropped by nearly 50% from the post-lockdown period. Ironic right?
Well, has scare gone too soon? Maybe. Do you want to scar 2021 with another lockdown?
No… right?
Don’t let your guard slip, don’t ease the panic, fear Covid.
