Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) Mayor Kishori Pednekar on Monday informed that the total number of containment zones in the city is now 1036.

"There has been a significant drop in the number of containment zones in Mumbai," Pednekar said. The Mayor said that many zones are out of the list as they reported zero COVID19 cases in the last two weeks. "231 zones are out of the containment zone list after they didn't record a single COVID-19 positive patient for the last 14 days," she added.

According to the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the total number of positive COVID-19 cases in Maharashtra is 8,068. Till now, 1,076 people have either been cured and discharged, while 342 deaths have been reported in the state.

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Your mother gets more and more confused these days. She forgets names, does not recognise usually familiar faces and often starts speaking only to forget the rest of the sentence. She gets tired easily and slumbers a lot. Sometimes she drools like a baby while asleep on the easy chair. You feel a little sadness inside: she is 73, poor thing.

Old age sucks.

Your father, who ran marathons and stayed fit all his life, can hardly take a reliable step any more. His gait is unsteady, he seems wobbly and you constantly fear that he will fall. He has taken a couple of tumbles already and been injured. Poor man, he is 79.

This is how the end begins, you think, with halting steps and frequent falls. It will lead, you suppose, to dementia, forgetfulness, perhaps Alzheimer's, dignity pads, nannies and probably finally pneumonia through too much food going down the wrong way.

You realise both of them will need more care and probably more of your time. One day you might notice a tremor in his hand which makes it impossible for him to feed himself — and an ayah will be hired for the job. This will only get worse, you tell yourself, until the day they find release through death. With any luck, it will not be a lingering, painful one.

This, you tell yourself, is what ageing and senility look like. You don't look forward to the day it will come to you.

My mind has been on the elderly in our lives ever since COVID-19 entered our world. It has a particular appetite for taking away our senior citizens, particularly those over 60, we are told, and more especially if they have underlying conditions. No matter who you are, how young you are, you will one day watch a beloved parent or senior relative decline — and like the overwhelming majority of us, you will dismiss it as creeping old age.

What if you were very very wrong about the signs of old age? What if all the things we call ageing are the result of a single missing vitamin called B12?

My digging began around 2010 when my mother started falling forward every time she stood up. Her hands were unsteady, her once 20-20 vision was blurry, she misheard things, spoke disjointedly, frequently forgot names and faces and frequently dozed off while watching TV. She was then 77, and I thought — she's getting old.

I began reading and googling, meanwhile, and one day, I made a list of all the behaviours and symptoms that I naturally assumed were a part of normal ageing.

Clumsiness
Irregular gait, stumbling
Frequent falls
Forgetfulness
Depression and moodiness
Deteriorating vision
Disorganised speech
Tangential or incoherent thinking
Easily tired, needing more sleep
Being feeble, anaemic
Trembling
Being incontinent (not being able to hold pee in)

Guess what? Every one of these is a symptom of a deficiency of vitamin B12, otherwise known as cobalamin. It is one of the most complex vitamins, with a single cobalt atom in the centre, and the only one that your body does not synthesise. Vegetarians and vegans must get it through dairy or soy products. Eating meat and animal products like dairy products, milk and cheese provide your body with the 2.4 or so micrograms you need every day.

That microscopic amount, it seems, is all your body requires to maintain a healthy central nervous system, produce healthy DNA and make red blood cells.

And then old age starts creeping up on you. Unknown to you, your stomach starts producing less gastric juices, and this directly affects your body's ability to synthesise vitamin B12 from the food you eat. Some people turn into belch and fart factories as they age, struggling with acid reflux at night, popping proton pump inhibitors and antacids. These pills make it even harder for your body to synthesise and absorb vitamin B12.

Your near and dear see what they suppose are signs of senility but they're actually the first signs of a developing B12 deficiency in your ageing parents — weakness, fatigue, shakiness, unsteady gait, incontinence, low blood pressure, depression and other mood disorders, and cognitive problems like poor memory. Since B12 is water-soluble and stored by the body in the liver along with other B vitamins, the deficiency cannot be detected in a blood test until the level drops below 250 picograms per millilitre of blood serum.

There is no good estimate of how many senior citizens we label as aged without checking if they are actually only displaying signs of vitamin B12 deficit. Once detected, it can often be fixed with a single injection once or twice a year.

My mother did have a vitamin B12 deficiency. Injections restored her to a semblance of a more normal life for some years till she died of other causes.

Here, viewed from there. C Y Gopinath, in Bangkok, throws unique light and shadows on Mumbai, the city that raised him. You can reach him at cygopi@gmail.com
Send your feedback to mailbag@mid-day.com

The views expressed in this column are the individual's and don't represent those of the paper

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The fight against Coronavirus is a constantly evolving one and is mainly reactive at the present moment in many contexts.

The BEST authorities are putting into place a plan which reduces the number of conductors in the few big, reds plying the city.

This is because, as a report stated in this newspaper, a few from the BEST workforce have contracted the Coronavirus. They are now going to run buses, some being already operational in this manner, with a driver and no conductor. The commuters will have to pay at the end of the journey.

It is important that the few passengers we see in buses today, follow rules whether there is a conductor or not. Maintain social distance in the bus, even if there is no conductor to enforce this.

Adults must know that the distancing is mandated for their safety and the security of their family too, so one surely does not and should not need somebody literally telling them to observe social distancing.

Ride in the bus wearing a mask, and do not slip it off your face or hang it around the neck during the journey. Do get on at the proper stop and follow correct etiquette even while alighting. Do pay the correct fare for the journey you took.

We must recognise that this is special, though necessary, service for workers and those providing essential services, thus necessitating commuting during these times.

The report also cited a BEST Kamghar Sanghatna official opposed to keeping conductors out, saying this was a ruse to start one-man operations amid Coronavirus.

Dialogue must ensure that there is transparency and talks within the Undertaking which is facing so many challenges — Coronavirus or not. May all do the BEST for Mumbai.

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A 26-year-old woman in labour was turned away from one hospital after another in Kalwa and was forced to deliver inside the autorickshaw that was ferrying them. The baby's father Janak Joshi, 25, then held the baby tight until the family reached Lakhmichand Fatichand Hospital in Thane, which finally admitted the woman and cut the umbilical cord.

Janak, a native of Nepal, works as watchman at Saurabh Towers in Thane's Kolbad Naka where he also lives with his wife and son in a small room allotted to him. His wife Geeta, 26, was due in April and Janak had been very worried about how to take her to hospital in the lockdown. He had then spoken to auto driver Mangesh Jadhav who lives in the same residential building, who agreed to ferry Geeta in case she went into labour. But the had no idea that Jadhav's rickshaw would be the place where the baby would finally be born.

Mangesh Jadhav who ferried Janak and Geeta Joshi from one hospital to another and in whose auto their baby was born

Janak said, "The civil hospital is just a kilometre away from where we live. So, we first went there to get Geeta admitted, but we were told that there are Covid-19 patients and so it would not be possible to admit her. From there we rushed to Shivaji Hospital in Kalwa where, too, we were denied admission and were told to take her to Lakhmichand Fatichand Hospital in Thane. We began our journey to Thane, but meanwhile, Geeta delivered the baby right on the Kopri Bridge inside the auto. Our son, too, was with us in the auto and was confused at first with not knowing what was happening. But, he was soon thrilled when he learnt he had a baby sister to play with."

Janak was overwhelmed and could not stop thanking Jadhav who took his family from one hospital to another and finally waited as Janak's wife delivered the baby in the rickshaw. "I held my daughter as she was delivered and held her tight until we reached the hospital in Thane where both were finally taken in and the umbilical cord was cut. Both are healthy now and we will be discharged soon," said Janak, adding that both mother and child are COVID-19-free.

"I was so tense about Geeta's delivery but Jadhav was so helpful in our time of need. We were also stopped at many checkposts which wasted a lot of our time."

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With the Railways refusing to comply with Maharashtra's request to help migrants reach their hometowns, the state government is working out its own plans to despatch them. Sources said the government has roped in the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) for help.

An internal plan of just one district — Yavatmal by MSRTC (a copy of which is with mid-day) has revealed that it has lined up 115 buses to 15 state capitals. In an unprecedented gesture, these buses will travel around 1,000 to 1,800 km to drop off over 2,000 migrants and return back to base. Mentioning about the cost element, the letter has sought a sum of R1.35 crore from the district collector to release the buses as per the plan.

Labourers wait in a queue to collect Ifatri food packets at Kidvai Nagar in Wadala on Monday

Sources also said that the state government is negotiating with other states to accept the proposal and two states - Odisha and Uttar Pradesh have displayed readiness. However, a few states have claimed that they do not have enough money to arrange transportation for the migrants and also conduct the COVID-19 testing at the same time. Therefore, they want either Maharashtra or the Union government to spend on transportation which can be a contentious point in the entire deal.
However, MSRTC officials said the plan was still under consideration and nothing has been finalised yet.

Moreover, MSRTC and transport department officials said that meetings have been held at Mantralaya about these issues and discussions have been going on with various stakeholders. But as of now, no final decision has been taken yet.

The delay is because it involves stakeholders from other states and there are issues like streamlining the process and to develop a standard operating procedure to allow Maharashtra state buses into their state borders. A comprehensive plan involving all stakeholders needs to be arrived at so that the transport becomes smooth from end to end. This is besides the decision of who will bear the expenses of the journey.

Buses for students in Raj?
The MSRTC has also proposed to run another 91 buses from six bus depots to get about 1,764 medical students stranded in Rajasthan back home. Sources said since it is a long road journey, the buses will have two drivers. Of the 1,764 students, about 23 are from Mumbai, Thane and Palghar districts. However, MSRTC spokesperson denied this saying that no plan has been finalised yet.

17,000
Total no. of buses with MSRTC

115
Total no. of buses lined up from Yavatmal

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After the death of three police personnel due to COVID-19, the Mumbai police are telling constables aged above 55 years and those having existing ailments to immediately proceed on leave. The option for the paid leave was made available on Monday and will last till the lockdown.

Accordingly, the police top brass has directed police stations and traffic divisions to give leave to such constables. If a constable still wishes to come to work, he will be allowed to.

Traffic cops are most vulnerable as their work involves highest people-to-people contact

The three deaths in the Mumbai police workforce occurred within 48 hours. Wanting to save the rest of their colleagues who might be especially vulnerable, senior officers have given clear instructions.

"We have given orders to police stations and traffic divisions to give leave to constables aged beyond 55 years. Those having serious health issues have also been advised to take rest," said Param Bir Singh, commissioner of Mumbai police.

A policeman checks a car at Bhendi Bazar. Pic/Ashish Raje

"On Sunday, we asked for information from the headquarters about constables aged between 50 to 52, 52 to 55 and 55 to 58 years and any ailments they might have," said a senior police officer on condition of anonymity.

Health experts have observed that people aged above 50 and having health issues such as diabetes, asthma and heart conditions are more susceptible to the Coronavirus. "Since the beginning of the lockdown, we had asked our senior inspectors and traffic division in-charges to assign desk duties to constables aged above 50 years, with minimal contact with outsiders," said another officer. "Yet we lost three personnel. Hence, we are enforcing the policy further to avoid more fatalities," added the officer.

Deputy Commissioner of Police and spokesperson for Mumbai police, Pranaya Ashok said, "The message is loud and clear — cops aged above 50 should not be posted in hotspots or in containment zones. In fact, they should serve for tasks that involve minimum social contact. Now we are going a step forward by giving constables aged above 55 years the option to go on leave."

"Enforcing law and order is our priority but saving the lives of our men is also our duty. Therefore, we have given such constables the option to stay home April 27 onwards till the end of the lockdown. Traffic cops have the most contact with people, making them the most vulnerable," said a senior officer from the traffic police.

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The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) on Monday claimed that around 75 per cent of the nursing homes in the city have restarted services, after its warning of cancelling their licences if they did not do so, on Saturday. The municipal commissioner has ordered the cancellation of licences of the remaining 25 per cent nursing homes. Action will also be taken against private clinics who continue to remain shut, under the Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897.

Warning issues
The associations of doctors, nursing homes have expressed fear to work during the COVID-19 pandemic without proper safety kits and strict guidelines. The BMC has several times offered to provide safety kits but most private clinics and nursing homes remain closed due to fear of transmission of COVID-19. On Saturday, the BMC warned nursing homes and clinics to restart immediately and refer patients who have symptoms of COVID-19 to its centres. On Monday, the BMC claimed that out of 1,416 nursing homes, 1,068 have restarted their service. "Out of 99 dialysis centres, 89 are working," said an officer with the health department of the BMC.

According to the press note issued by the civic corporation, the municipal commissioner has ordered the health department to start the process of cancelling licences of the 348 nursing homes which haven't started services yet.

Mayor in nurse's uniform

Mayor Kishori Pednekar visited Nair hospital to meet the nurses

Kishori Pednekar, mayor of Mumbai and a former nurse, donned on a nurse's uniform and visited the COVID-19-only Nair hospital on Monday morning. She was there to encourage nurses. The mayor will visit Sion hospital on Tuesday to communicate with nurses. Pednekar followed social distancing norms during her visit. "I was a nurse by profession and am aware of their challenges. I am getting many calls from nurses and their parents who expressed fear. This is a challenging time and we all should fight the pandemic," said Pednekar.

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To increase efficiency, effectiveness of patrolling and to give the city's foot soldiers some much-needed rest, the Mumbai police department has decided to adopt a new duty pattern.

Under the new pattern, the constabulary and officers will have to work 12 hours post which they will get a 24-hour break. Apart from doctors and health workers, cops too have been busy fighting the COVID-19 pandemic on the frontline. However, after constables (three already) started losing their lives to COVID-19, the top brass decided to set up a new duty pattern.

Accordingly, a new 12-hour shift has been introduced in the force. In this, personnel at police stations will be divided into three units, each working a 12-hour shift. "Duty will start at 8 am and end at 8 pm, when the next batch will come for night duty," a senior police officer said. "Whichever cop finishes his/her 12-hour duty at night, they will go home and come back to work the next day at 8 pm," added the officer.

This duty pattern will give each officer rest of a good 24 hours. "Even if this duty looks like 12 hours, a lot of multitasking is expected on this job as it includes patrolling, nakabandi and other activities. This makes cops new duty timings doable in such tough situations. As there are hardly any crimes happening in the area, the duty load has reduced," another a senior police officer said.

"Also, when an officer or constable gets more than 12 hours off, they can look after the families and their own health which will improve their immunity," the officer added.

Out of 94 police stations, 74 have adopted the new duty pattern and the rest will follow. "This duty pattern does leave me with a smaller force, but it reduces their exposure to the virus. As a frontline worker, we can't think about avoiding crowded places, but we can be well prepared for it," a senior Inspector from Eastern Region said.

"We have given instructions to all Zonal DCPs to chalk out a plan which will give a 12-hour duty and 24-hour rest to cops. We have to take care of our men, too. Currently, feedback from cops is good," Mumbai Police Commissioner, Param Bir Singh said.

Third cop succumbs to COVID-19

A third cop has died from COVID-19, taking the casualty toll among city cops to three. Head Constable Shivaji Sonawane, 56, attached to Kurla Traffic division, died on Monday. He was turned down by four hospitals on April 21, when his 25-year-old son tried tp get him admitted. Sonawane, a resident of Kurla's Kamani area, had a fever since April 20. The GP gave him medication and advised him to visit a hospital if he did not get relief. His fever did not subside and he started to feel breathless.

Sharad, Sonawane's son, took him to Rajawadi Hospital, Ghatkopar, on April 21, to get him admitted, but was told to take him to Kasturba. He was turned out at Kasturba, over no beds and at Nair and KEM too. Finally, it was after Kurla traffic division in-charge spoke to the Bhoiwada senior inspector that Sonawane was admitted at KEM Hospital.

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COVID-19 has now reached the doorstep of the state government, with four Mantralaya staff members testing positive for it. The state health department officials confirmed 27 deaths in Maharashtra, which was the highest number reported in a single day and the state's count of cases climbed to 8,590.

Civic officials said that of the four Mantralaya staffers, three tested positive on Sunday while one was confirmed on Monday. "They were on duty and include a sweeper and a driver. Contact tracing is underway and we will test the high-risk contacts," said a civic official. The official added that a portion of Mantralaya may be cordoned off if necessary. Guardian Minister Aslam Shaikh said that the staffers were taken to Kasturba Hospital for testing.

Four more ward boys of the TB Hospital in Sewri tested positive on Sunday taking the total count of infected staff members to 14. "One of the ward boys had directly gone to Kasturba Hospital and was admitted with symptoms. He has been shifted to the ENT Hospital. Two others are Thane residents and had sore throats," said Dr Lalitkumar Anande, medical superintendent of the TB Hospital, adding that two of the ward boys have been kept in isolation at the staff quarters.

No new cases in Mahim, Dadar
The number of cases in Dharavi continued to rise with 13 new cases reported on Monday. Majority of the new patients were senior citizens taking the total count in the area to 288. Civic officials said that no new cases were reported from Dadar and Mahim for three consecutive days and while 17 patients were discharged from Dadar, nine were discharged from Mahim on Monday.

The cumulative cases in Mumbai city are 5,776 while the total cumulative deaths here are 219. State health officials said that there were 522 new cases in Maharashtra, of which 369 were from Mumbai. Of the 27 deaths, 15 were from Mumbai, six in Amravati, four in Pune and one each in Jalgaon and Aurangabad. Among the deceased patients, 22 suffered from other ailments including diabetes and hypertension.

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No one informed us that my brother had been killed. We heard about his death on news," said Rakesh Tiwari, the brother of Kalpavrishkgiri Chikne Maharaj who was lynched in Palghar earlier this month, from Uttar Pradesh's Bhadohi taluka where the deceased priest's family lives.

On the night of April 16, a frenzied mob of close to 450 tribals lynched 70-year-old Chikne Maharaj, another priest and their driver, suspecting them to be thieves, at Gadchinchale village. While the incident made headlines across the nation, Chikne Maharaj's family learnt about his death only two days later.

Rakesh told mid-day over the phone that neither the police nor the authorities in the state informed them about his demise. We learnt through the news two days later that Kalpavrishkgiri had been brutally murdered in Palghar, he said.

Kalpavrishkgiri had left his home in Uttar Pradesh at the age of nine and was reunited with his family after 20-long years. When Kalpavrishkgiri was nine years old, he left home for Gramsabha Bhusavla school at Bhadohi one day, and never returned. We searched for him across the town but didn't find him." After reuniting with him 26 years later, the family learnt that he had gone to Nashik to become a monk, Rakesh said.

"We found his address when Kalpavrishkgiri was about 35-year-old and learnt that he had become a priest. After leaving UP, he had gone to Trimbakeshwar Shiva Temple to become a monk and later moved to Mumbai. He was a priest at Vandevi temple at Jogeshwari East. We accepted him and I used to meet him whenever I visited Mumbai."

Kalpavrishkgiri wanted to attend the last rites of our mother, who died on March 22, said Rakesh, adding that he couldn't make it to Uttar Pradesh due to the lockdown in Mumbai announced by the Maharashtra government in an attempt to contain the spread of the novel Coronavirus.

"On March 22, I called to my brother to inform him about our mother's demise, but due to the restrictions he could not attend her funeral. He was our mother's favourite son," Rakesh told mid-day. Rakesh said, "Our wish was to attend my brother's final rites but we received the information very later and that too from the media."

He also accused the police of failing to save his brothers and the two others with him. The videos clearly show that the police surrendered my brother to the mob, who then brutally thrashed him to death, said Rakesh, adding that the police could have saved Kalpavrishkgiri.

"Not a single police officer informed us about his death," Rakesh told mid-day.

Tilghate was driving Chikne Maharaj and Sushil Giri to Surat where the duo were headed to attend the last rites of a head priest, Ramgiri Maharaj. However, they came across the tribals, who were enraged by the rumours that a gang of child lifters were active in the region. While the police maintain that close to 450 people were part of the mob, a local leader had said as many as 2,500 tribals had gatheredthat night.

16 April
Day the two priests and their driver were lynched

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The Aurangabad bench of the Bombay High Court on Monday pulled up the state for its claim that the novel Coronavirus could spread through newspapers. The state had, accordingly, banned the distribution of newspapers, while allowing its printing. The court, in an order dated April 20, directed the state to justify its claims with evidence and expert opinions instead of meagre statements.

A suo moto public interest litigation (PIL) in this regard was filed at the Nagpur bench of HC after the distribution ban was announced on April 18.

Government pleader DR Kale told the court that the order was amended on April 21 to allow "door-to-door distribution except in MMR, Pune, and other containment zones."

While Kale said that the virus stayed on surfaces for a while, and hence newspapers could be potential carriers when passed from hand-to-hand, the court said that there was no evidence to prove this.

It, however, added that door-to-door delivery could be restricted in some areas while asking the government to respond to its queries along with a report by amicus curiae advocate Satyajeet Bora.

The next date of hearing in the case is June 11.

11 June
Date of the next hearing in the case

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The Maharashtra cabinet has reiterated its recommendation, that Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray be made a member of the legislative council from the governor's quota, which has two vacancies. The cabinet had requested this to the Raj Bhavan following a decision taken on April 9, but the delay has created a political tussle between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Maha Vikas Aghadi at a time the state needs a stable government.

It is necessary for Thackeray to become a member of either house within six months of taking charge of the CMO (before May 26). The elections to the council were postponed because of the pandemic, and the CM was left with no option but to seek a seat in the governor's quota. The term of the vacant post will end in the first week of June, but that will save the CM's resignation, because he could be in the office without being a member of the either house till he gets elected in the rescheduled upper house polls.

In a stunning statement some days ago, Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut had accused the Raj Bhavan of being part of a political conspiracy. In view of the tussle, the cabinet met on Monday under the chairmanship of Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, to pass a resolution to send Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari the recommendation again. Since Pawar's authority of chairing cabinet meetings in the absence of the CM was challenged before the high court on the ground that the Dy CM position had no constitutional validity, and the CM had not authorised him to conduct the cabinet meeting, Tuesday's reiteration is considered as making the state's case stronger. But a minister said Pawar was authorised by the CM on April 9 and the MVA detractors were making false claims. The cabinet has decided to tell the governor that the state government was fighting the pandemic with all its might and teamwork.

"The pandemic is intensifying and in such a grave health crisis the state needs a stable government," said its statement.

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Every day for over 10 days, a 39-year-old mechanic has been driving down to Mumbai from his house in Virar, to sanitise the vehicles of the police and the BMC. Vijay Kumar Babanna Rajappa runs a small garage opposite the Siddhivinayak temple at Prabhadevi. It has been closed since the lockdown, but Rajappa, who wanted to do something for our frontline warriors in the battle against COVID-19, has been helping them free of cost. So far he has sanitised over 150 vehicles.

Rajappa has sanitised all the vehicles of police stations at Shivaji Park, Mahim, Dadar, Virar and Arnala. He was given a letter of appreciation from many police stations for this. "We gave a letter of appreciation to Rajappa for helping the police department by sanitising our vehicles including mobile vans, cars, beat Marshal's bikes etc. It protects us from this virus while traveling from one place to another place," said Sunayana Nate, inspector of Dadar police station.

Virar corporator Maya Chaudhary said, "We took Rajappa's help to sanitise municipal emergency service vehicles, buses, police vehicles and auto rickshaws in Vasai-Virar. Rajappa is doing great work without charging for it. We have also asked him to sanitise vehicles used by doctors, nurses and ward officers."

'Keeping our police safe'
"Every day the police deal with many people including accused and have to take them to police stations or courts. Currently these may include COVID-19 positive people. The accused touch many areas inside the vehicle. So I decided to clean their vehicles and keep all our police personnel safe from the danger. I also clean the bikes of beat Marshals. If their vehicles are safe, they are safe," said Rajappa.

Rajappa even explained the process of cleaning the vehicles. At first he washes a vehicle with water from both inside and out. "Then I wash it with diesel and dry the entire vehicle. Then I use a litre of water mixed with sanitiser and apply it to the vehicle. It takes me an hour to completely clean a car. I use a sanitiser which is WHO and FDA-approved. It is only used on the metallic body of cars and bikes."

'Sanitisation helps'
He added, "If a person who is infected by COVID-19 travels in the car, there are chances it can spread to others who use the vehicle. The air-conditioning can also increase chances of spreading this virus, but if we sanitise the vehicle, there are no chances of the virus spreading." He claimed after a vehicle is sanitised, it is safe for about 15 days. He now wants to approach hospitals to sanitise ambulances.

Rajappa has been working as a mechanic since 1999. The usual charges for deep washing of vehicles are around R300-R500 each, but he has not been charging for the same.

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The Palghar pot is boiling with the Communist Party of India Marxist (CPI-M) saying they are going to file defamation cases against a couple of BJP leaders for defaming CPI-M, by making baseless claims against them for the lynching of the two priests and their driver in Gadchinchale village. Mumbai's Ashok Dhawale, Central Committee member, CPI-M said, "We will file the case shortly. When the CPI-M says something, it always goes ahead and never backwards."

The roots
Dhawale explained that the Communists have had their imprint in the whole of Dahanu and Talasari tehsil. "It has been our base since 1945 when Comrade Godavari Parulekar led the revolt of the tribals against landlordism and bonded labour. This is how deep our roots go into this land. We have the MLA seat in Dahanu, with the dashing Vinod Nikole defeating the BJP sitting MLA in 2019."

Work done
On accusations that it is the Communists and this party that foment violence, leading to mob frenzy and agitation, Dhawale shot back, "We have worked for drinking water and water for irrigation. We drive movements for uplifting the health infrastructure in the region, we have schools, colleges and hostels in Talasari district. We have worked for women's issues, rations..."

Long march
Dhawale added as a Mumbai example, "It was the CPI-M that was at the forefront of the long march of farmers from Nashik to Mumbai in 2018. One of the demands was better implementation of the Forest Rights Act. There was no violence on that march, not a single car window was smashed. It was during this time that a BJP leader spoke about Urban Naxals and that term has stuck."

Bullet train
Another name swirling in the Palghar blame game is that of the Kashtakari Sanghatana. Dhawale said, "The Kashtakari Sanghatana and the CPI-M have had a prickly relationship.

However about three years ago, we came together to galvanise people in the area against the Bullet Train project. We have buried the hatchet so to speak, since."

Parliamentary process
In the end, Dhawale said that the CPI- M was totally against the Maoist violence in fringe pockets, "We have always been part of the Parliamentary process, right from Independence. We have unequivocally condemned the Palghar lynching; for the right wing to link it to us, to defame us, is simply nonsensical."

Go and file
Mumbai's Shriraj Nair, national spokesperson Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), slammed the CPI- M saying, "If any villager is innocent we support him. We are for tracking down the culprits of this crime. For years though, the CPI-M has been brainwashing villagers and conducting anti-Hindu activities. They are also anti-development."

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Thje city is facing many challenges amid the Coronavirus lockdown, but the one thing in its favour is the water stock. The lakes that provide water to the city have enough water to fulfil the city's needs through the summer.

As of Monday, the lakes have 29 per cent of the water stock, which will last for almost another 80 days, that is, until July.

This means, there will be no water cut this summer. Last year, when the city was facing a water cut, the total water stock was 19 per cent on the same date.

The BMC had imposed a 10 per cent water cut from November 2018 till July 2019. During the last monsoon, the lakes received rain till early December and as such, the water stock is still

The seven lakes — Bhatsa, Tansa, Upper Vaitarna, Middle Vaitarna, Modak Sagar, Tulsi and Vihar — supply water to the city.

Their total water storage capacity is 14.47 lakhs MLD (million litres per day). As of Monday, there is 4.31 lakh MLD water in the lakes.

Last year, on the same date, the water stock was 2.88 lakh MLD.

The BMC supplies 3,800 MLD water to the city every day. Around 700 MLD water is being used by industries while the floating population — people coming from other cities — use around 50 MLD water.

"After the lockdown, the industrial water supply is obviously reduced but the city gets normal water supply. It means there is more water for residential areas," said Ashok Rathore, chief of the Hydraulic Engineering Department.

Due to the manpower crunch, the meter reading has not been taken and the exact use by industries and residences has not been measured.

As per the IMD forecast, the monsoon will be normal this year.

29
Percentage of water stock currently available

Available water stock (in mn litres)

Upper Vaitarna: 2,802
Modak Sagar: 61,632
Tansa: 38,539
Middle Vaitarna: 89,953
Bhatsa: 224,881
Vihar: 10,133
Tulsi: 3,478
Total: 4,31,418

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Ruling out lifting of lockdown after May 3 from across the country, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has asked states to decide on their lockdown guidelines depending on the prevailing situation on the ground. He said the pandemic was far from over and hence the country needed a balance between the lockdown and the efforts of keeping normalcy in daily life.

Modi told chief ministers on Monday that the lockdown had yielded positive results and the country had managed to save thousands of lives in the past 45 days.

"Our aim must be rapid response, and 'do gaz doori' (physical distancing)," he said, adding that the states where positive cases were higher should not be treated as criminals.

Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray is reported to have supported the lockdown where it is needed most. He also said on Sunday that the lockdown could be lifted after May 3 only if the situation allowed. Union Home Minister Amit Shah reaffirmed the need to enforce lockdown so that maximum lives were saved.

Amid rising concerns about a weakening economy, Modi said that efforts of states should be directed towards converting red zones into orange and thereafter to green zones.

"We have to be brave and bring in reforms that touch the lives of common citizens. We have to give importance to the economy as well as continue the fight against COVID-19. The impact of Coronavirus will remain visible in the coming months, masks and face covers will be part of our life," he said.

"India's population is comparable to that of the combined population of several countries. The situation in many countries, including India, was almost similar at the beginning of March. However, due to timely measures, India has been able to protect many people," the PM said, emphasising that the danger of the virus was far from over and constant vigilance was of paramount importance.

Cabinet meet tomorrow
He said, "This is the time we used technology as much as possible and utilised time to embrace reform measures," the PM said.

Sources said the Union cabinet would discuss the matter on Wednesday. In all likelihood, the decision on lifting or easing lockdown is expected to be announced at least four days before the deadline of May 3.

State home minister Anil Deshmukh who also participated in the CM's interaction with PM said in Nagpur that the red zones where higher cases of COVID existed would in probability continue to have lockdown."Orange and green zone may get lockdown relaxed and CM himself would announce about it," he said.

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With most areas in the city marked as COVID-19 hotspots and no transport available, residents feel that the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation's (BMC) circular allowing pre-monsoon repair work and waterproofing in buildings before the onset of monsoon, is nothing but an eyewash. They are of the opinion that if the lockdown continues beyond May 3, it will be practically difficult to complete work before the rains, as no shops selling cement, sand, brick and waterproofing chemicals will be open.

Speaking to mid-day, Somasunderan Nair, director, Intercons Tectonic (Pvt) Ltd, a Vashi-based firm doing engineering and civil construction work, said, "It is just impossible for the labourers to go to different locations with no transportation available. They can't travel between construction sites located in different areas of Mumbai and Navi Mumbai."

Rekhi Sai Daffodils has been undergoing repairs since January

'All going to waste'
"Also, I had stored raw materials (cement and sand) worth a few lakhs of rupees at different buildings undergoing repairs, but all of it got stalled due to the lockdown," added Nair. He further said, "At one of our Kharghar site, the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) staff had asked the site supervisor to wind up all repair work, and at that time, a ready-mix cement mortar consignment was being offloaded from a Gujarat registered truck. Since the municipal staff warned of '15,000 fine per staff, the workers had no option but to leave the site. Nearly 700 bags of ready-mix cement mortar were offloaded, but I fear that all of it will go to waste. They have been lying unused for over one month and if the lockdown continues, we might have to dispose of the raw materials."

While the BMC has come out with a circular allowing work to be carried out, the NMMC and PCMC are yet to provide any clarity on such repair works.

Exposed beams of Rekhi Sai Daffodils in Kharghar

A Ghatkopar West resident, whose building is under repairs, said, "We have stored some materials in our building premises and have allowed some workers to stay on the compound. Even the contractor is ready to buy construction materials like bricks, cement etc from the local market, but for that we need to know where such outlets are open."

'Apply for online permissions'
When contacted, a senior official from BMC's Development Plan department said, "We have issued the circular which clearly states the directives. As per the directions of the state government, certain activities are being allowed during lockdown. However, the said guidelines were stayed by the government vide GR dated April 21, 2020 for Mumbai Metropolitan Region and Pune Metropolitan Region. However, to save some existing structures/buildings and prevent flood like situations during monsoon, certain construction activities within MCGM limits may be allowed in non-containment zones."

Navre Premises Cooperative society in Sion West

When asked that if the entire city is under lockdown, then how will the circular be implemented, the official said, "It is a fact that most of the areas in Mumbai are containment zones and no work will be allowed there. If the situation is under control after May 3, then as and when the lockdown is lifted, work can be started. Meanwhile, the contractors/societies concerned should apply for online permissions."

And if monsoon sets in by then, the official said, "The contractors can cover the open terraces with tarpaulin sheets and permission can be given for repairs post monsoon."

Expert speak
When contacted, senior lawyer, Vinod Sampat, said, "As far as the BMC is concerned, everyone is interested in protecting their own skin. There is no coordination between government departments. A simple solution can be easily worked out by designating one responsible official for the job. He would ensure that the residents' requirements are easily met and the construction materials are made available to those whose buildings are getting repaired. Secondly, there is no accountability among government officials and they are unpredictable. As far as possible, repair work should not be undertaken immediately. A better way would be to put tarpaulin sheets on the buildings and postpone repair work to the post-monsoon time."

He further said, "Moreover, it is very difficult to get skilled labourers now as most of them want to return home. And lastly, if any of the contractors or their workers test positive for COVID-19, the society managing committee members may be held responsible for not taking proper precaution."

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In a first, the Central Railway (CR) seems to have come up with a permanent solution for the falling boulders in the ghat section known for disrupting services during monsoon. Accordingly, CR has recreated steel tunnels which will trap falling boulders and protect the passing trains below.

Last year, CR deployed 60 additional CCTV cameras, posted gangmen, rock-bolting at 750m stretch and drone cameras to alert approaching trains, but all were of limited help.In 2017, three passengers on the Hubli-Lokmanya Tilak Terminus (LTT) Express suffered injuries after a boulder came crashing through the roof while it was passing through Khandala ghat.

After the problem was analysed last year, it was revealed that the increased incidents of boulders falling on tracks along with mud had been due to heavy monsoon.

So, officials started working on the steel tunnel portal extension last year in four tunnels. "The work has been progressing with the lockdown in place and will be completed before the monsoon sets in," CR chief public relations officer Shivaji Sutar said. "Work of removing loose boulders is still underway and at present, we are running boulder special trains, and patrolling the mountains to scan loose boulders and tunnels," he added.

In the history books
Historically, the Indian Railways has been dealing with the problem of boulders in this stretch since its inception. But they never cancelled these many trains to manage the situation as they have done in recent years. The archival records of the Great Indian Peninsula Railway, which is now called Central Railway, on the initiation of passenger rail service on the ghat section in 1864, had issued a notice on the operation of the 'terrain section' by dividing the entire stretch into 13 parts with three watchmen deputed for each.

4
Total no. of tunnels in which steel tunnel work is underway

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No net gains

The poor are left to protect themselves in tents on a skywalk in Powai on Monday. Pic/Sameer Markande

Paisa vasool with Pant

At a time when uncertainty hits most industries around the world, writer Meghna Pant's first-ever podcast on Audible hopes to bring some clarity on money matters. Titled Show Me The Money, the podcast is a personal finance audio show that addresses the basics of saving, investing and spending with experts and top investment houses such as SBI, HDFC, and DSP. The recording began last December and about the importance of the show now, Pant told this diarist, "The deepest learning from this pandemic is that life is unpredictable and we need to be prepared for anything. And the only things that can help us tide over tough times, downturns and job losses, are our savings and investments. What are smart financial decisions? How can women, millennials, artists, freelancers and influencers become richer? What's worth spending on and what's not? The idea is to give people money advice that actually works, while they're sitting at home in their PJs. All for free!"

Party all night

This diarist watched DJ Ivan offer his friends a treat when they were starved of their fix of weekend dancing recently. A bunch of them were on a video call when one person directed them to a mammoth set that the city-based musician was playing live on Instagram, where he started spinning old-school electronic tunes around midnight and went on for seven hours straight. The friends logged in to the music from home, showing how the definition of partying in Mumbai has changed during the lockdown. "This is for those who are missing the club right now," the gracious DJ said.

Some signs of the times

Although we're all finding ways to comprehend the current scenario we're living in, an emoji that accurately represents what we're going through can always help. So, the New York-based creative agency &Walsh has launched hundreds of emojis that can be downloaded for free — because they were "frustrated by the limitations of the current emoji set." Too scared to text your crush? Just send them the "Be My Quarantine?" emoji. Tired of people reminding you to wash your hands? Show them the graphic depiction of bubbles emerging from your hands instead. And if you can't deal with anything or anyone at the moment, simply send the banner that says, "Hello I Am Going Insane". We understand.

Why you should swing into this auction

After the pandemic struck artist Raju Sutar took up the brush up in a bid to help with relief work. It started off with 30 paintings that he posted on social media, appealing to followers to pay R500 or more for each. "I asked them to pay the money to either the Maharashtra Chief Minister's (CM) Relief Fund or any other COVID-19 fund. The paintings were sold out in 20 hours and some people paid more than R3,000 for them," he told us. This is what led him to kick-start an auction on Instagram. The circular paintings, each 3.5-inch in diameter, are inspired by the popular card game Ganjifa. "I've posted four paintings so far. Each day, one painting goes under the hammer and I take bids till 10 pm in the comments section. The winner is declared after that and they need to send the money to the CM's Fund. I'll send the artworks to the winners by post once the lockdown ends," he said, adding that R23,000 has been raised so far.

A mindful debut

Singer, actor and speaker on mindfulness, Raageshwari Loomba Swaroop is set to make her literary debut next month as her book Building a Happy Family (Penguin India) will be launched digitally by Oxford Bookstore. The title comes with a foreword from Dr Shashi Tharoor and the author focusses on the impact books, music, art and positive reinforcement has on the lives of children. "I always believed that parenting is about bringing up the parent and not the child. I wrote the book so we adults can re-visit our childhood through our children's unique eyes," Loomba Swaroop told this diarist. In doing this, she also stated that we will magically realise that these "little masters" are our greatest teachers in mindfulness. About the motivation to delve into mindfulness per se, the London-based author added, "I starting collecting notes on it soon after my recovery from facial paralysis. It's been 20 years since then. But when I started the journey of being a mother, in my mind first, I knew I wanted to be a non-judgemental and easygoing mother. Mindfulness made me realise that for it to happen I would first have to start by being non-judgemental and easy going with myself and everyone around me."

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Mumbai police personnel on lockdown duty were attacked by a mob at a Govandi market on Sunday. A police officer suffered injuries to his right wrist when a person from the 25-strong crowd tried to hit him on the head with an iron rod. The officer managed to block the blow with his right hand.

The incident occurred at 6.50 pm on Sunday when a large number of people had stepped out of their homes amid the Coronavirus lockdown and 10 police personnel on the spot asked the people to disperse. Senior Police Inspector Sudarshan Paithankar said that the "illegal crowd" had refused to listen when they were asked to return home.

"There was a large crowd with 25 to 30 active members. A person who was in the crowd tried to kill the police officer by aiming for his head with an iron rod, but the (officer) managed to block the blow with his hand, which got injured," he said. "They also pelted stones at the authorities, chanted anti-police slogans, and damaged a police vehicle, hence we had to resort to lathi-charge."

An FIR has been registered at Shivaji Nagar police station against 25 unknown men and two women, under Sections 307 (attempt to murder), 353 (Assault or criminal force to prevent public servant from discharging his duty), 332 (Voluntarily causing hurt to public servant to deter him from doing his duty) and other sections.

"The problem of people not observing lockdown has increased in the past few days since Ramzan began," said Paithankar, adding that six people had been arrested in connection with the case so far. "We are looking for the rest of the accused."

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The Maharashtra Jail Administration has allowed prisoners to talk to their families over landlines. as family visits to jails have been disallowed due to the lockdown. 

There are a around 36,000 prisoners across jails in Maharashtra, out of which 8,500 prisoners have been convicted. The total capacity of these jails is 24,000 so most jails in the state are overpopulated. In an attempt to create social distancing within the prisons, 4,611 accused who were serving jail sentences for non-serious crimes, were released on bail. However, the state administration continues to keep those involved in serious crimes behind bars.

According to a jail official, allowing inmates to communicate over phone was allowed so that they could be in touch with their families. The officer said, "We have details of all the accused and on the basis of those, we call their houses and allow them to speak to their families." Otherwise the accused could meet their families once a month.

The phone call facility between the accused and their family members are being allowed in every jail in the state. Around 25 accused are able to talk to their families every day. Every accused gets to make a phone call once a month.

IG Prisons, Deepak Pandey told mid-day, "The jailer first confirms that the person on the other side of the phone is a member of the family of the accused, only then the call is allowed. A duration of 5 minutes is given for each conversation between the inmate and their family."

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A doctor working at a hospital for treatment of coronavirus patients here in Maharashtra has revealed the tough task and challenges they face in collecting swab samples of the suspected patients. The process of swab sample collection of a person does not take more than 30 to 40 seconds, but it is a "high-risk job", Dr Pushkar Dahiwal, who collects 80 to 100 swab samples in a day at the government hospital in Aurangabad, told PTI.

"We work for three days and then remain self- quarantined for 14 days," he informed. During the six-hour duty, doctors have to keep wearing the personal protective equipment (PPE) and amidst the fast-paced work, they do not even get a chance to drink water, he said. "We need to finish the work in a short time to avoid contact with patients and also with those who come to give their swab samples," the doctor said. A 10 to 12 cm long stick is used to collect a sample from a person's throat, while the stick used for collecting a sample from the nose is comparatively longer and thinner, he said.

"Before the person coughs or sneezes, we need to finish the sample collection. Being a dentist, I have the practice of handling the patient's mouth area," he said. Dahiwal also said that at times they need to counsel coronavirus suspects as some of them think they don't have the infection but carry fear in mind. "Some of the people think the test is something different and dangerous. But, we explain the procedure to them so that there should be no need to collect another sample of the person," Dahiwal said.

The nurse and other accompanying staff also need to stay alert as the swab samples are to be sealed immediately and kept in a proper storage facility, he said. "If the swab sample falls, it would be a problem. All these things have to be completed in a very short span of time. So, there is no scope for mistake," he added. Dahiwal also recalled that he took care of victims of the 26/11 terror attack in 2008 at the Saint George Hospital in Mumbai. "I left the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus in Mumbai just 20 minutes before the attack began. At that time, we had feared the attackers may come from any side. That incident keeps coming to my mind every time when I collect swab samples of suspected coronavirus patients," he said.

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This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever

A 36-year-old man was arrested for beating his 70-year-old father in Bhandup to death after an argument on Sunday night. According to the police, the man, identified as Sachin Gorivle was having an argument about his employment with the deceased, Krishna, The Times of India reported.

Sachin did odd jobs for a living and was at home since the lockdown due to coronavirus outbreak in March. When Krishna argued with Sachin about his job, the latter attacked the former in a fit of rage. His mother and sister were in a different room when the incident happened.

Krishna was rushed to a hospital where he succumbed to his injuries.

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A nine-months pregnant woman was turned away from hospitals in Bandra for not having the COVID-19 reports with her. According to her family, 24-year-old Misbah Shaikh was experiencing cramps on Sunday night after which they visited the Holy Family Hospital where she had registered for delivery. The family members alleged that they were made to wait at the hospital for six hours while requesting to admit her, but the staff did not budge, The Times of India reported.

Shaikh said that she had already paid the hospital the deposit for her delivery and was in touch with a gynaecologist for the past four months. She also alleged that the hospital did not tell her to do the test during their previous visits. The family visited the hospital at 9 am on Monday after Shaikh felt cramps, but the staff did not allow them to enter the hospital without the COVID-19 test report. While Shaikh waited in the car and her family in the hospital, at 3 pm, a doctor at the emergency section agreed to see her and prescribed her a COVID-19 test.

The family then went to Bhabha Hospital to get the test done but the staff there asked her to get admitted, which they did not agree upon. "The cramps have reduced but haven't gone. My due date for delivery is close," Shaikh was quoted as saying by the newspaper. The family then took an appointment at a lab Andheri to take the test on Tuesday.

As the newspaper was not able to contact the authorities at the Holy Family Hospital, a staffer at the gynaecology ward was quoted as saying that pregnant women nearing their delivery due date are asked to get admitted here two days in prior. "We carry out a Covid-19 test and if she comes negative, we go ahead with the delivery. If the woman is positive, we refer her to another hospital. We also ask one attendant accompanying the woman to take the test," the staffer was quoted as saying.

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Social distancing and lockdown may have impacted each one of us mentally, emotionally and psychologically but it is the children and teenagers who have had to cope with sudden closure of schools, cancellation of exams and a prohibition of face-to-face interaction with their friends and teachers.

Anusha Manjani, Manager, Counseling Services at Akanksha Foundation, says, "Children are acutely aware of the sudden changes and panic in the environment around them. Younger children can feel confused, uneasy and scared; older children express feelings of anxiety, sadness and helplessness."

She added, "The uncertainty and chaos of the pandemic impacts all aspects of children's lives- it is not just a threat to their physical health- but to their learning, their home environment, their interaction with peers, their emotional well-being. Moreover, economic hardships, the overcrowding in homes, the lack of access to resources in low income communities can lead to higher incidence of neglect, violence and abuse- making staying at home itself a risk to some children's safety."

In such a time, it is crucial that children have support of their parents and teachers to help them in having a routine and structure to their day. Anusha says, "Parents and teachers can be key caregivers and anchors during this time to support the mental well-being of children- by reassuring them of their safety, creating a space to share feelings and using art, play, fun learning activities to engage with them."

Akanksha Foundation has started a helpline number called 'The Listening Space' for all the stakeholders such as students, teachers and parents to express themselves or just discuss about what's happening. While younger children have more questions about whats happening outside, older  children are venting out their frustration, their anxiety about their parents etc.

Parents and teachers are also coming up with interactive tasks and new ways of learning. Worksheets are sent to the students everyday and once the child solves it and shares it, the teacher reverts with the corrections as well. 

It is not just academics that are taken care of amid lockdown, things such as maintaining gratitude journals and 'doing a good deed everyday' are also being imbibed in the children to maintain their mental and emotional health.

A creative snakes and ladders

"At Akanksha, teachers, counsellors, social workers and parents are working together to support the children- whether it is checking in for the child's well being, spreading awareness of safety measures, encouraging learning through low-cost tech or doing parent-child activities- we are keeping the lines of communication and connection open and strong to navigate these difficult times together," says Anusha.

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The 73-year-old mother and wife of a police constable have tested positive for COVID-19 in neighbouring Navi Mumbai, an official said on Tuesday. The constable, who is attached to the Mumbai police, had tested positive for the infection earlier, while swab reports of his elderly mother and wife came out positive on Monday, public relations officer of the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation Mahendra Konde said.

In another development, a 42-year-old heart patient, who died while being shifted to a hospital in Navi Mumbai, tested positive for coronavirus post death, the official said. A 57-year-old medical personnel of a civic hospital in Mumbai has contracted the infection, and at least 12 civic workers, who came in contact with her, were quarantined, a release from the Palghar district administration stated.

As per reports, the number of positive cases in Palghar stood at 146, of which 10 patients have succumbed to the infection. Meanwhile, as many as 41 new COVID-19 cases were reported in Maharashtra''s Thane district, taking the tally to 728 in the region and toll to 21, after two more died on Monday, an official from the district administration said.

With 41 patients, Mumbra town has recorded the highest number of cases in the district.

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While the world is grappling with the impact of the horrific COVID-19, and the entire nation is under the lockdown, there are people who are finding it difficult to make both ends meet. Mumbai’s Dabbawalas, who ensure that a delicious, warm ,home cooked meal reach in time every single day at work, today are battling to have a meal in their own plates. Radio City, India’s leading radio network, has launched a fund raiser initiative, Dabbewale ka Dabba Bharo, and have been urging Mumbaikars to come forward and contribute towards the initiative.

Radio City in Mumbai, kick started this initiative on 22nd April, where all the RJ's across their shows have been sharing the current state of Dabbewale's, with around more than 5 thousand of them are finding it difficult to feed their families since the lockdown was announced. Radio City has been urging Mumbai city to come forward and contribute towards the initiative. There has been an overwhelming response from the citizens and uptill now, approx. 62 thousand rupees has already been collected

To garner a wider reach and raise more funds, Radio City has created a video (https://youtu.be/e1XCjt8FSBI) that has been promoted across Radio City’s social media handles. Radio City has always been at the forefront to help the city and its citizens through various initiatives like these and spread a wave of positivity.

If you wish to contribute Please click on the link: www.ketto.org/radiocity

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This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever

Central Railway and Western Railway joined hands to ensure a two-year-old child in Telangana received camel milk — a mandatory medical requirement needed urgently. In a 28-hour-long operation, the two zones of the Indian Railways coordinated to deliver the item in Secunderabad from Falna in Rajasthan.

On April 25, the nodal officer of Falna on WR contacted us and told us that they needed to send a parcel of camel milk to Secunderabad urgently for a medicinal requirement and sought details of the trains on the route, said Jitendra Mishra, chief commercial inspector, Mumbai Division, CR.

"I checked the schedule of parcel trains and immediately informed him that if they will send the item to Mumbai via 00902 Ludhiana-Bandra Terminus parcel train, then we could be promptly load it on 00111 CSMT-Secunderabad train leaving Mumbai CSMT on April 26 at 3.30pm," he said.

Mishra then coordinated with him and booked a consignment to Bandra Terminus first and then via CSMT to Secunderabad. "We live-tracked the consignment with the help of Mumbai Central (WR) control staff and officers. As soon as the consignment reached Bandra Terminus, a transport was arranged to take it to the CSMT parcel office from where it was loaded onboard the Secunderabad-bound parcel train," he added.

Mishra's role was not over here. He then called up the Chief Parcel Supervisor and Commercial Inspector at Secunderabad and explained the importance of the parcel that would be arriving there by 5.30 am on April 27.

Shivaji Sutar, CR's chief public relations officer, said, "The transportation of essential camel milk was based on coordination among parcel staff and the officers. The consignment reached from Falna to Secunderabad within approximately 28 hours."

WR's chief PRO Ravinder Bhakar said that special teams in every division of the IR are taking care of the medical emergencies as well as the essential transportation during this global health crisis.

Sowmya also thanked the Railways for delivering the parcel meant for her child in such a short time.

CR extends another help
Jitendra Mishra intervened again on Monday to help get a crucial medicine for a heart patient delivered to Chiplun from Vikhroli. "We collected the parcel from his son's residence at Vikhroli and booked it onboard Okha-Ernakulam Parcel Express. As the train doesn't halt at Chiplun, I contacted the staff at Konkan Railway and requested a halt to drop the parcel, which was then handed over to Chiplun Station Master," he said.

28
No. of hours it took the railways to get the milk to the child

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India post – a subsidiary of the Ministry of Communications – stepped in to help the residents of Madh Island, after a report in mid-day highlighted their plight regarding cash. They had been plagued by dysfunctional ATMs since the national lockdown was announced due to the COVID-19 pandemic. But very few transactions were successful, since most residents didn't have their active mobile numbers linked to their Aadhaar cards — which is a must for availing the service.

After reading mid-day's April 26 report, India Post sent a team of three postmen to the area on Monday, to provide door-to-door cash withdrawal services — at no extra charge — via their mobile phones. Using their government-authorised mobile phones, these postmen helped residents withdraw money from their bank accounts and handed the cash to them—provided their bank accounts and active mobile phone numbers were linked to their Aadhaar accounts. Although a handful of residents were able to carry out successful transactions, a majority of residents could not avail the service since either their active phone numbers were not linked to their Aadhaar cards or their bank accounts.

One postman = 1 micro ATM
Speaking to mid-day, Saranya U, senior superintendent of Post Office of Mumbai North Division (under whose jurisdiction Madh Island falls), said that each of the postmen deployed for this service is equipped with government-approved mobile phones that are pre-loaded with the India Post Payment Bank (IPPB), as well as a biometric scan device that can be connected to the mobile phone. "For us, each postman acts like a micro ATM. Using their mobile phones, each of them could enable people to withdraw up to R50,000 from their bank accounts," she said. This limit was extended from R10,000 to R50,000 in the light of the COVID-19 situation.

She explained that a person had to simply run their biometric fingerprint scan through the device connected to the postman's mobile phone (Aadhaar requires thumbprints to cross-confirm). "If a bank account has been linked to the Aadhaar account, then money can be withdrawn from that account. The person's current active mobile number is also required since an OTP will be sent to it. Another step also includes authenticity confirmation from UIDAI," she said.

If all these criteria are fulfilled, people can withdraw money from the comfort of their homes. "However, we were able to distribute only R11,000 in total because most people either don't have their Aadhaar or active mobile numbers linked to their bank accounts. We carried out a total of 25 transactions, but only 4 of them were successful," said Saranya, adding that India Post's door-to-door cash withdrawal service is more popular in rural areas.

'It was easy'
India Post also reached out to Manisha Suryavanshi, a resident who is disabled with polio in a leg, and was mentioned in the mid-day report. "I was surprised to see them. They ran me through the entire process… and I got the amount instantly in my hands. I also received a debit message on my mobile phone…it was easy and we were not charged for the service," she said.

4
No. of successful transactions

25
No. of total transactions attempted

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It felt totally like a eureka moment to me at the grounds of Jaipur Literature Festival, 2012, soon as my eyes turned and I saw on stage, Oprah Winfrey, seated for a conversation, with Barkha Dutt.

Up until then, one had, of course, followed Dutt's work as an indefatigable newscaster, best known for lending a human touch to her dispatches/reports. Quite literally so sometimes — as she'd tenderly pat her interviewees on the shoulder, gently goading them to reveal issues they faced, before a camera. Audiences were hopefully moved, witnessing the plight of the socially distant other!

Many may have had issues with this style of emotional/exploitative news-casting, as if it was a Bollywood film. But the fact is the penny dropped only when I saw Dutt with Winfrey. It's totally my bad that I had misinterpreted her form of communication as journalism alone. Firstly, given the subject, no, not gonna fall into the tiring Twitter-troll trap that, for years, has been demonising Dutt and the lot as 'biased'/'paid' media. As if there can be any other!

Which loser works in a profession without ever being paid for it? And does the fact that you can't possibly publish all that's fit to print not indicate bias anyway? One only hopes this doesn't veer towards prejudices. And that whatever calls a news-outlet takes, don't involve sneaky, private deals, or peddling blatant lies in public.

Making motivations known only helps consumers make a choice. Mahatma Gandhi, like Bal Thackeray, ran one-sided newspapers. Neither is accused of bad journalism. Do the same arguments apply to news television?

Though all that there is to it are debates and arguments, anyway? It's odd what the medium grew into, given satellite television in India itself owes its origin to a news event—the 1991 Gulf War, that led to an enterprising South Bombay hotel (then Taj President) placing a satellite dish on the terrace, for its guests to access news on CNN!

The first TV channel delivering 24-hours news, of course, came up only at the fag-end of last millennium. For a medium with a history as short as the story of a boy, who's grown up on steroids, neglected by parents, with a much brighter younger sibling (Internet), and having just about attained legal age for marital sex, it's impossible to tell where it stands currently, let alone where it's headed into the future.

Here are a few facts still. That in less than a decade since the launch of the first Indian round-the-clock news station, there were 300 in competition, for unique eye-balls, often across the nation. All these viewers should ideally have been interested in exactly the same visual-item on screen, while the importance of news per se, is determined by the proximity of the event to the consumer!

How does one compete then? In 2002, when the medium was too nascent, all its three main channels were accused of partisanship in reporting the Gujarat riots — ostensibly aimed at their respective viewerships. Wherein Zee and Aaj Tak were called out for mentioning the religion of victims in the Godhra carnage, but conveniently concealing so while covering the riots that followed. Likewise Star/NDTV was accused of overplaying the possible complicity of the state/police; fanning negativity against both.

But this is still within purview of news. By mid 2000s, when the scene had totally exploded with too many channels to keep count, the country, it was assumed, could only be united by cricket and Bollywood. That's what you saw a whole lot of on Hindi channels. And that you don't anymore. Also, religion (bhakti) and superstition (UFO landings/sightings) reigned supreme.

The creative crescendo of this movement away from news though occurred in July, 2006, with the fall of a five-year-old Prince, into a 55-feet pit, in a village called Aldeharhi, 150 kms off Delhi. For 50 hours that it took for the boy come out of the well, several channels had broadcast his rescue (or the lack of it) for over 24 hours! Since general entertainment had possibly failed, this was television news acknowledging its competition was reality TV. No knock.

The turning point for this genre was of course the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks—live-television for three days straight, involving cameras stationed mainly outside hotels Taj and Oberoi-Trident, but with obviously no fresh footage to upload. What do you do then? Open live commentary, package it as debate, express shock, rally around pent-up emotions. 26/11, a reporter's story, turned TV news into an anchor's medium, with Arnab Goswami at Times Now as its patron saint.

Pretty much all stations feel/sound the same since. Leader dictates competition. Goswami, a pop-culture phenomenon inspiring skits and memes, runs his own channel, heating up a studio, introducing nightly villains, firing at folk on multiple windows, picking up cues primarily from social media—feeding off the mob and feeding right back into it. But come what may, delivering weekly ratings at the box-office of television.

It's been 12 years. Obviously he's not just a journalist. Now he has a rep to protect, and expectations of core-audiences to meet. He defined the era he belongs to, and people are used to seeing him a certain way. Read again. Sounds like Shah Rukh Khan to me.

Mayank Shekhar attempts to make sense of mass culture. He tweets @mayankw14 Send your feedback to mailbag@mid-day.com

The views expressed in this column are the individual's and don't represent those of the paper

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Amidst the general gloom of these days, we should never forget all the stories of courage and hope. One such uplifting account has lessons for all of us.

A teacher of a BMC school, came up with the idea to hold classes for students during the lockdown period. She has been holding conference telephone calls with students, who are now getting lessons via these telephone calls.

It must be remembered that these are kids that do not have access to the Internet or computers. There is a section of children in the city who are logging on to the Internet every day and have regular school online. While that is one of the upsides of our hi-tech lives these days, those that do not have this lifestyle must also be encouraged and be able to continue with their studies.

A report in this paper highlighted how this teacher is telling her students to come together via telephone calls and imparting lessons.

It is true, as she said, that too long a break results in children forgetting what they have learnt, or in extreme but real scenarios, dropping out of school altogether.

Students must be on our radar in these times. They face tough questions, about exams, their future and stress over what the next academic year will bring for them.
Teachers must be creative in bringing lessons to children. Parents must try to ensure that children re-learn and refresh what they had learnt in the past. Extra effort and pain are needed from all stakeholders in these times.

Clear communication by the school principal or management at regular intervals may dispel some uncertainty. Let efforts towards academics be full-on and let us take care of young minds and hearts which may be filled with confusion and trepidation.

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After the death of three police constables within 48 hours, the police have rolled out a 10-point strategy to tackle the COVID-19 infection in its force that comprises around 45,000 personnel — both constables and officers. Apart from resting its senior members and changing duty patterns, the police have now begun administering Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) to cops along with multivitamin tablets. Provisions will also be made for stay and nutritional food for cops till the lockdown lasts.

This will go on till the lockdown lasts. Ever since the pandemic broke out, senior cops have been given desk jobs but the infection spread among a few policemen and their family members.

Also Read: Exclusive: After Third Cop Dies Of COVID-19, Mumbai Police Sends Personnel Above 55 On Leave

"Our personnel are risking their lives to protect the city. Keeping their personal health and immunity strong has been a major priority for us," DCP (PRO) Pranay Ashok told mid-day, adding, "We have initiated a strategy to tackle it."

Accordingly, all cops above 55 years of age have been asked to stay at home, cops above 52 years of age with previous medical conditions have also been asked to stay home. The duty hours will also be changed from 8-hour shifts to 12-hour shifts and giving cops 24 hours off after that.

Around 12,000 cops will soon be administered with HCQ under medical supervision. Multivitamin tablets and protein supplements too will be given to 20,000 cops to strengthen their immunity.

Apart from this, police personnel will have the following special services:

1. Designated hospitals and dedicated beds in all COVID hospitals.

2. COVID Helpline number for personnel and families at the control room to resolve any doubts or issues.

3. Adequate number of PPEs, face masks, hand-sanitisers, gloves, face shields.

4. Amenities like food packets, ration, hot water flasks, pandals at checkpoints

5. Accommodation facilities

6. '50 lakh ex-gratia amount to all personnel who lose their lives fighting COVID (by the government).

12,000
No. of cops who will soon be administered with HCQ under medical supervision

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Even as the number of positive COVID-19 cases continues to rise in the city, a new trend has left medical experts puzzled. While doctors had expected that TB patients would be more prone to the virus as their immune system is already weak, surprisingly only two such cases have been reported by the health department. Also, officials at the TB Hospital in Sewri said that while 14 of their staff members have tested positive, the infection has not spread to a single patient.

A senior official from the civic health department said that it might be too early to draw a conclusion but a study could be done to understand the correlation between the two. "So far, we have reports of two TB patients who have tested positive. However, there have been no deaths so far. One reason for the low numbers could be that we have given all TB patients medication for a month and have asked them to stay indoors," added the official.

BMC medicos heading towards Shastri Nagar slum on Tuesday. Pic/Pradeep Dhivar

The trend has left Dr Lalitkumar Anande, medical superintendent of TB Hospital, surprised and has led him to believe that anti-TB drugs could be preventing such patients from contracting the virus. "One would have expected that the virus would have a fatal effect on TB patients since they are immunocompromised and their lungs are already damaged. However, here at the TB Hospital, we have not seen any such case yet," he added.

Dr Anande further said that laboratories like the National Institute of Virology in Pune could conduct studies on this since they have culture samples of TB as well as Coronavirus. "Anti-TB drugs penetrate the lipid coating of a TB organism similar to what hydroxychroloquine does to the Coronavirus strain. Anti-TB drugs could turn out to be an answer for Coronavirus. Studies regarding it need to be fast-tracked in order to understand how they react to each other," he said, adding that the research would also be able to ascertain whether the mycobacterium or the TB medication has an impact on the virus. While Sion Hospital reported two cases of TB patients suffering from COVID-19, the authorities of KEM and Rajawadi Hospital said that none of their COVID patients were suffering from TB.

'Evidence needed'
Speaking to mid-day, Dr Rajendra Nanaware, a chest physician, who deals with drug resistant TB cases, said, "Ideally, there should have been an increase in the number of TB patients suffering from Coronavirus since their immunity is already compromised. But I haven't seen any case so far."
Other pulmonologists in the city treating TB patients have noticed a similar trend but they are of the opinion that evidence is required before a trend can be verified.

Dr Lancelot Pinto, a pulmonologist with Hinduja Hospital, said that since the OPD of many hospitals have shut down, patients were not able to access healthcare. "Since chronic obstructive pulmonary disease has been identified as a risk factor among COVID-19 patients, intuitively, one would expect the cases of TB patients testing positive to be high. I have not seen any TB patient testing positive for the viral infection. But there is no evidence yet," he said.

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Nearly three dozen cops, including Assistant Sub Inspectors to constable-rank policemen, attached to Kasa police station in Palghar have been transferred as a result of the Palghar mob-lynching incident.

Sources at the police station told mid-day that 35 policemen have been moved to different police stations in Palghar district, as they failed to gauge the public mood despite repeated offences by local villagers, who had been rearing their heads against the government.

"Just two days before the barbaric killing of three men — saints Chikne Maharaj and Shushil Giri and their driver Nilesh Tilghate, the mob, in a similar manner, had attacked a doctor. The doctor was spared as he too is a tribal," said an officer from Palghar police.

"Kasa police should have taken stern action against the mob as they had injured policemen in the April 14 incident. Had action been taken against the mob then, local villagers would not have mustered the courage to gather at one place and dared to lynch the trio," the officer said.

Two police officers, PSI Sudhir Katare and API Anandrao Kale, have been suspended over 'dereliction of duty'. However, action taken by both on April 16 — the day of the lynching — has been defended by eye-witnesses.

Meanwhile, the sarpanch of Gadchinchale village Chitra Choudhary has been given police protection after she wrote to Kasa police about threats from relatives of the accused. One of the two watchmen of the forest department, Sonudaji Borsa, has registered an NC against the mother of an accused for threatening him but no protection has been given to him so far.

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After 15 cases of Coronavirus among its workforce, including one death, the BEST Undertaking, that is currently the city's lifeline, has begun daily temperature checks of employees at entry points of all bus depots.

BEST officials said that of the 15 cases, two have been categorised under 'occupational exposure' — that is, the virus was probably caught by the patients at work. In the rest of the cases, employees came to work after already being exposed to the virus elsewhere. For example, one of the infected employees was residing in a Containment Zone and the one who died had visited his native place and had been hospitalised.

"Eventually, a picture goes out that the 15 BEST employees got Coronavirus while at work. The fact that they came to work after already having been exposed to the virus elsewhere is ignored and this aspect of occupational exposure goes unnoticed. Of the 15, seven are bus conductors, four are drivers, two are electricity department employees and two are from the transport engineering department," a BEST spokesperson said.

"Temperature guns have been provided at bus depot entry points and the body temperature of all employees is being checked when they enter the premises for work. Only after due recordings, employees are allowed to proceed to work," another senior official said.

The BEST also redrew its plans and omitted conductors from several buses after cases of employees contracting the virus at work surfaced and trade unions alleged poor standards of protection for the staff.

"We had been warning since day one. The BEST has woken up after 35 days, now that employees are testing positive. Still, better late than never," said BEST Kamgar Sanghatna general secretary Jagnayaran Kahar. The union had organised a 'Demand Day' on April 21 seeking safety for BEST workers.

Conductor beats COVID-19
A BEST conductor of Goregaon depot, who has a history of asthma, and a resident of Mira Road, was admitted at Tambe hospital as a COVID-19 positive case since April 13. On Tuesday, he was discharged from the hospital.

Made to sign undertaking: BEST Power staff

BEST Power employees said that they have been forced to sign an undertaking that says they have not come in contact with Coronavirus patients and that no one in their family is positive. A BEST spokesperson said that the undertaking was necessitated because, in 13 of the 15 positive cases, the virus was probably caught by the workers elsewhere. The spokesperson added that the understanding is required to maintain a database.

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After a stricter lockdown in place from April 19, Mira Road is seeing the number of COVID-19 patients on the lower side. The municipal commissioner of Mira-Bhayandar Municipal Corporation (MBMC) says 'the curve is flattening'.

"Earlier the cases doubled within a week. But in the past nine days, the number of positive patients has increased by 40 per cent. The rate of doubling is slower than before and the curve is flattening. We need citizens' continuous support to flatten it further, " said Chandrakant Dange, municipal commissioner of MBMC. 

The doubling rate for Mumbai is around seven days. In Mira Road the number of patients started increasing in the first week of April.

On April 12 the positive numbers doubled to 51 in just four days and the next double numbers were reported on April 17. After the number of patients crossed the mark of 100, the MBMC imposed a complete lockdown from the midnight of April 19. Since then the MBMC has sent around 349 more samples for tests of which 43 have turned out positive. The rate of patients turning positive seems to be around 40 per cent from the findings of April 19 - 102 to around 10 days later on April 27 - 145.

Political parties and the civic administration recently held a meeting over relaxing lockdown norms. However, the administration hasn’t changed the lockdown pattern as yet. "The number of positive patients is on the lower side and many patients are recovering. We are strengthening the home delivery system," said a senior officer of the MBMC.

Locals face food issues
While the MBMC has allowed milk booths to operate from 7 am to 10 am, chemist shops up to 5 pm and grocery and vegetable home delivered, residents are facing difficulties getting these goods. "Only select vegetables are available and the rates are high. We are not getting diapers for my baby," said Jasbir Sanyal, a resident of Shanti Park.

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Mumbai on Tuesday reported the highest death toll due to COVID-19 in a single day. There was a significant increase in the number of cases in Aurangabad and Malegaon. State health officials recorded 729 new cases in Maharashtra and 31 deaths, taking the state's total to 400 deaths. Apart from 25 deaths in Mumbai, four were recorded in Jalgaon and two in Pune. Maharashtra now has 9,318 postive cases.

393 new cases in city
Civic officials said a total of 25 deaths were reported in the city on Tuesday. Of these, five died between April 23-25, and 17 of them were suffering from other ailments. According to the civic body, 393 new infections were confirmed in the city on Tuesday. The patients are admitted in isolation wards and are undergoing treatment.

After a dip in the number of cases, the COVID-19 count rose in G North ward with 42 new cases in Dharavi, five in Mahim and four in Dadar. Four deaths were also reported in Dharavi. Civic officials said two of the patients who died — a 60-year-old man and a 60-year -old woman — had tested positive earlier and died at Sion Hospital while undergoing treatment.

Total 18 deaths in Dharavi so far
Two other patients — a 48-year old man from Kasarwadi and a 55-year-old man from Social Nagar in Dharavi — were confirmed to have contracted the deadly respiratory disease and died at KEM Hospital on Tuesday. As of now, a total of 330 positive cases and 18 deaths have been reported from Dharavi.

Civic officials said that seven of the infected people are residents of 90 feet road, while four others are from Mukund Nagar, and majority of them were aged below 60 years. In Mahim, a 35-year-old female resident of the police colony tested positive and the total number of cases in the area has jumped to 30. In Dadar, two 44 -year-old male residents of the municipal quarters and a 47-year-old woman from the police colony have tested positive.

On Monday, four staffers from the Mantralaya had tested positive. After tracing their contacts, civic officials said that they identified around 25 high-risk contacts and all of them have been tested. Their test results, however, are still awaited. Meanwhile, one COVID-19 patient with severe symptoms was given plasma therapy that will help the patient fight the infection.

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Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Aditya Nath was quick to call his Maharashtra counterpart Uddhav Thackeray after two Hindu sadhus associated with Kashi's Juna Akhara were lynched by a mob in Palghar last week.

On Tuesday, Thackeray responded by ringing up the UP CM to express his concern over the murder of two sadhus in Bulandshahar. Thackeray said he was expecting Palghar-like prompt police action in arresting the culprits and suggested not giving a communal colour to the incident.

According to a Maharashtra CMO release, Thackeray told Yogi that he was with the UP government in protesting against the heinous crime. Yogi's response was not known.

Thackeray had assured Yogi that the Palghar incident wasn't communal, but a fall-out of rumour-mongering. The government and Opposition continue to exchange barbs and accusations as the lynching is being probed.

Thackeray had issued a warning against communalising the Palghar incident with a special emphasis on the Hindi-speaking religious leaders who threatened to march towards Maharashtra to seek answers from the CM.

When the Palghar issue seemed to be alive, more so because of a police case against a news anchor, the anti-BJP lobby raked up the UP killing asking right-wingers many questions. Congress spokesperson Sachin Sawant questioned the silence over the UP incident. "This happened in a BJP-ruled state. The BJP politicised the Palghar lynching but is now keeping silent," he said.

April 16
The day three men were lynched in Palghar

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With more than a month since the lockdown began, a few students from outstation are still stuck in Mumbai University's (MU) hostels. A majority of them managed to head home, but there still are about 20-23 students in the Churchgate and Kalina hostels.

Though their mess provides them with meals, the students still pay for food and need other daily essential items. None of them have any money left and no assurance from home as many come from farmers' families who are already facing a loss due to lockdown.

So these students have requested the varsity to provide them financial aid. "Money is very important when you are staying away from home. Every day each student ends up paying a little over R120 for all three meals at the mess. The university has issued orders that the mess should not charge us, but we know that if we don't pay, the canteen service provider won't be able to buy items," a student at the Churchgate hostel said.

Another student from the Kalina hostel said, "The university has asked the food contractor to not charge but that is not practically possible until they have been provided with groceries etc. If the varsity provides us financial aid, we will be able to ensure our other needs such as soaps, toothpaste etc. are met."

Rohit Dhale from Chatrabharati, who has written a letter to the varsity over the issue, said, "Most of these students are from families which are not financially stable. The students are few and if the varsity decides to help them it won't be a huge amount." MU registrar Ajay Deshmukh said, "We have already ensured that the mess continues to function so that these students do not have a problem with food. We have asked the mess contractor to not make charges mandatory during such difficult times. We have received the letter and it will be discussed with the Vice-Chancellor to decide what can be done."

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With the tourism industry at a complete standstill across the country, a number of domestic animals associated with it have been severely impacted. In the Raigad district of Maharashtra, too, a number of these animals are a common sight, especially at the tourist spots like Matheran, Raigad fort and the beaches. Horses, donkeys, monkeys and stray dogs at all these places have been left without any food to eat. These places, usually frequented by hundreds of tourists every day, have seen barely any visitors over the last month and a half. The tourists would offer food to the animals who are now left to fend for themselves. Even the locals who have pets are finding it tough to manage without much income.

Given the grim situation, the district animal husbandry department along with a few do-gooders have now taken upon themselves to feed the animals and provide them ample drinking water.

Donkeys given dry grass at Raigad Fort

Dr Shubash Mhaske, district deputy commissioner, Animal Husbandry department, informed mid-day that the district, known for its farmhouses, hill stations, forts and beaches, has around 1,200 horses and ponies, of which nearly 460 are reared at Matheran hill station and the rest at the beaches around the districts. With the forest cover in Raigad district, monkeys too are found in large numbers here. "These are often fed by commuters en route to their destinations but that has stopped for over a month now," Mhaske said.

Dr Mandar Patel, Livestock Development Officer, Roha, therefore, visited the ghat areas on Roha-Nagothane road a couple of days ago with his team to feed some monkeys. Similarly, a team even visited Matheran to arrange food and water for the monkeys there.

Animal lovers step up in Pen
Hundreds of stray dogs and 40 cows are also being fed daily by a few animal lovers in and around Pen in Raigad.

"Cimaa Punmiya has come up with an innovative concept of Animal Food bank, where any animal lover can donate food. Kumar Deshpande provides a liquid diet for the strays. The Animal Husbandry department has arranged for medicines," Dr Mhaske said.

Donkeys of Raigadwadi starving
Another animal hit by the lockdown is the donkey. Around 90 donkeys reside around RaigadWadi, foothills of Raigad Fort. Dr Dattatray Sonawale, veterinary assistant commissioner of Animal Husbandry, Mahad Taluka, informed mid-day that the restoration work of Raigad Fort is on for the past couple of years and nearly 250 donkeys were being used to take up repairing material.

"Most of the donkeys had come from nearby areas and only 90 are still at the spot. They are owned by six-seven families who are still staying at the foothills of the fort," said Sonawale. These people along with their donkeys have been having a tough time sustaining due to the lockdown as "the donkeys are not allowed to roam around in the fields making it difficult for them to manage fodder or dry grass," the doctor added.

Prabhakar Sawant, a Raigadwadi resident, said that most of the donkeys are hired by contractors of restoration work.

After the district collector's directives, Sonawale and his team approached a few NGOs requesting them to provide dry grass, rice bran, wheat bran and medicines required for treating some injured donkeys. "Accordingly, potable water of 1,000 liters has been provided at the spot," he said, adding that the effort will continue to provide feed and dry grass to the donkeys till they are "in our jurisdiction and ration kits will be given to their owners."

'Everyone will be taken care of'
Nidhi Choudhari, district collector, told mid-day that the collector's office was doing everything to reach out to migrant workers and underprivileged people by providing ration kits and organising community kitchens with help from NGOs and corporates. "Directions have also been given to the Animal husbandry department to ensure that animals and strays are taken care of. Many animal lovers too have volunteered to help," Choudhari said.

1,200
Approx no. of horses/ponies in Raigad district

460
No. of horses/ponies at Matheran

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A senior citizen from Kalina, Anwari Begum, 70, died after three top hospitals in the city refused to give her dialysis without her COVID-19 test results being in, the woman's family has claimed. The test results, which arrived on Monday, returned negative.

Begum had been undergoing dialysis at Guru Nanak Hospital in Bandra East for the past one year. Her last dialysis at the hospital was on April 18, when a COVID-19 positive patient was found in the hospital. The hospital asked her to visit on April 22 — which was also the day of her next dialysis — for a COVID-19 test.

Anwari Begum's two sons (from left) Zakaria Shaikh, Haroon Shaikh and Mohammed Hasan (right ) her son-in-law

"My mother-in-law's COVID-19 test was done on Wednesday, April 22. She was also supposed to get dialysis on the same day but the hospital refused, saying they will do it only after her test results come, which was going to take 48 hours. On Thursday, she had severe pain and needed the dialysis urgently. So we went to the hospital around 4 pm but they refused as her reports were pending. We waited for over two hours at the hospital, but they did not listen," said Mohammed Hasan, Begum's son-in-law.

"After Guru Nanak, we approached Nanavati Hospital. Many other patients like us were stopped at the gate. They took her files and after two hours, enquired about her COVID-19 test report and said that they are not taking outside patients. Some from the family took her to Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital around 8.30 pm and I went to look for a dialysis centre in Kalina and Sakinaka. At Kokilaben, my family was asked to finish formalities, which took two hours, but they too refused to treat her," Hasan said.

Guru Nanak Hospital in Bandra East. File pic

Found help, but too late
Dialysis patients all over the city have been suffering amid the Coronavirus pandemic. Despite guidelines from the State Health Department that do not necessitate a COVID-19 test for patients needing dialysis and only ask hospitals to take universal precautions, hospitals across the city are refusing to treat patients without the test.

Hospitals say that they are overburdened due to the closure of dialysis centres which has increased the volume of patients with kidney ailments and that they cannot accommodate every patient.

Hasan approached Axon Hospital in Sakinaka, which said that the dialysis centre is closed as their staff is unwell. "I requested them explaining the condition of my mother-in-law and pleaded with folded hands to have mercy. I also promised to pay whatever amount is required. After some time, the concerned doctor listened to me and called his dialysis staff. My mother-in-law reached the hospital around 11 pm. At 11.30 pm, the assistant doctor told me that her condition has worsened."
Begum died shortly after that. Her test results, which came on Monday, showed her negative for Coronavirus.

"The funeral was performed the next day at 10 am. Sometime later, I received a call from the person who had referred us to the nephrologist at Guru Nanak Hospital. He was apparently told by someone from the hospital that my mother tested positive. We live in a joint family and everyone panicked but no one from the hospital called us. A few days later, we got her report, which was negative," Hasan said.

According to BMC's Health Department, a COVID-19 test is not mandatory for dialysis patients. "Everyone has to take universal precautions, a COVID-19 test report is not mandatory," said Dr. Daksha Shah, BMC's deputy executive health officer.

"24 hours after sanitising the dialysis centre, the hospital can resume services as per the guidelines. If they suspect a patient to be positive, he/she can be quarantined," Dr Shah added.

'Followed task force rules'
Guru Nanak Hospital defended itself saying it was just following guidelines of the state government's task force committee, as per which, an affected dialysis centre must close for fumigation and surface cleaning. "Our dialysis centre is open 24x7. That day, a COVID-19 case was reported. As per the rules, we had to shut the dialysis centre for 24 hours, sanitise the area and quarantine the staff. Around seven workers from the dialysis centre were quarantined. They have tested negative," said Dr. Narendra Sharma, spokesperson of the hospital, who did not clearly remember on which day the case was reported.

"Dialysis patients travel through Containment Zones. Despite taking all precautions, such incidents are happening, which is the biggest challenge for us," Sharma said.

"As per my knowledge, the case was reported on Saturday. We needed the dialysis on Thursday. That makes five days. Why did Guru Nanak Hospital refuse to treat her when it is supposed to be shut only for 24 hours?" Hasan said.

Dr. Santosh Shetty, executive director and CEO, Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital, said, "We are not testing our existing dialysis patients. We take patients' history and screen them before every dialysis. Currently, we have nearly 200 patients on dialysis. We are following BMC and state task force's guidelines."

While the spokesperson of Nanavati Super Speciality Hospital said, "Nanavati Hospital is one of the very few quaternary care medical facilities in Mumbai to provide dialysis treatment for COVID-19 patients. Thus the high influx of patients ensures dialysis beds reserved for patients as per their COVID-19 status are occupied. However, the unavailability of a bed is immediately communicated to the patient or their family."

Apr 22
Day Anwari Begum was tested for Coronavirus

Apr 27
Day her test returned negative, four days after her death

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A Bandra court on Tuesday granted bail to Vinay Dubey, accused of inciting migrants to assemble outside Bandra railway station on April 14 in violation of lockdown norms. Dubey was granted bail on a cash surety of Rs 15,000 by metropolitan magistrate JY Ghule, his lawyer Deepak Mishra said.

On April 14, the last day of the first phase of the lockdown, several hundred migrants had assembled on the west side of Bandra railway station, demanding trains take them to their native places, just hours after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced an extension of the lockdown till May 3.

Police claimed Dubey's video and Facebook post incited the migrants, as he was heard stating that the government must run trains by April 18 for migrant labourers, or he would start a rally to get them home.

Dubey was charged under sections 117, 153 A, 188, 269, 270 and 505 (2) of Indian Penal Code on charges of promoting enmity among different groups, abetting the commission of an offence by members of the public, and for negligence that could spread infections, disease etc. He was also charged under the Epidemic Diseases Act.

Advocate blames police
Advocate Mishra claimed the police was wrong in charging Dubey. "Dubey had said in the video that an agitation would start on April 18. However, migrants gathered on April 14 itself. So how can my client be blamed for that?" he said. He also told court that the migrants had been able to gather despite the lockdown because of the failure of the police and state.

Rs 15k
Cash surety against which he was granted bail

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This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever

The Kalachowkie police have registered a case against three people who entered a sealed building on the pretext of checking for COVID-19 patients. The building was sealed after BMC officials found positive patients in it. The trio was equipped with thermal scanners.

According to the Kalachowki police, on Monday afternoon, the accused Aniket Chaugule, 25, Deepak Wagh, 24, and Ashok Chavhan, 22, visited Vikrant Sadan building in Chinchpokli and posing as BMC employees, told residents that they had come to checking for any positive patients in the building.

When the residents asked for documentary proof, the trio could not produce any. So, the residents called the Kalachowkie police.

As soon as the call was received, a police team reached the building and after interrogating the three found that they were not BMC employees. A case was registered against all three and the police quarantined them. The accused have been maintaining that they had come to do social work and had no intention of cheating anyone. Police are verifying their claims.

A police officer told mid-day, "Outsiders are banned from entering the sealed building. In such a situation, these three people violated the law by entering the building and lied to residents that they are BMC employees. We are investigating further," said Kalachowkie Senior Police Inspector Gokulsing Patil.

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While videos and pictures of a big flamingo congregation in Mumbai go viral on social media claiming that the number of these migratory birds is high this year, wildlife experts stand divided on this deduction.

Over the past few weeks, large flocks of flamingos have been spotted at Airoli creek, NRI Complex in Navi Mumbai and Bhandup pumping station. This has therefore sparked assumptions that the number of flamingos this year is much higher than last year. Experts, however, feel that this is not new and that because people are observing the birds a lot more, it is leading them to assume the increase in number.

According to Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS), it has estimated more than 1.5 lakh flamingos were seen in Mumbai in the first week of April 2020 and the number has been high compared to last year.

Sunjoy Monga, naturalist/ecologist, writer and photographer, told mid-day, "Over the past years, flamingo congregations are pretty routine and this period is often longer for them than for most other migratory birds. However, if the numbers are higher this season it is difficult to quantify it because with people locked down in their homes, those living near Airoli creek, Palm Beach Road, etc, are continuously seeing the flamingo congregation they may not be accustomed to. So it is a question of perception."

Naturalist and bird expert Aadesh Shivkar said that the number of flamingos seen in and around Mumbai is definitely more this year. "It is true that the number of flamingos sighted in Mumbai and surrounding areas at present is high. One can see large flocks of flamingos at Airoli Creek, Bhandup pumping station and in Navi Mumbai and is an indication that they're preparing to fly back," he said.

"Another reason why we are witnessing more flamingos is that there is less disturbance in the city due to the lockdown and also because people sitting at home are utilising their time by clicking pictures of these birds," he added.

Retired Vice-Principal and associate professor of Zoology, Parvish Pandya said, "Because of the lockdown, people staying near water bodies have become more observant. Also, if some people feel that the number of flamingos has increased this year because there is less air pollution then it is not true because they arrived in Mumbai much before the lockdown. The number of flamingos currently in the city cannot be correlated with the lockdown."

1.5 lakh
Flamingos spotted in city in April

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Not allowed

Wall art in Jogeshwari East coincidentally depicts everything that's out of bounds including transport and dabbawalla tiffins. Pic/Rane Ashish

Your dance debut

It's World Dance Day today and a streaming platform has come forward to celebrate it and not just through dance films. Besides streaming classics like La La Land, Step Up and Dirty Dancing, they are urging users to replicate moves from the films and take away a bunch of prizes as part of Groove from Home.

A still from La La Land

"Dance and singing reality shows have always been a part of our culture and viewing habits so we feel this fits in seamlessly. In these unprecedented times we want to create opportunities where people can take their minds off gloomy news and lose themselves in a world of great stories," Rohit Jain, MD of the streaming platform, told this diarist. Log on to Lionsgate Play on Instagram to post your moves.

Keeping the spirits up

Deboo in choreography with Manipuri martial artistes. Pic/Farrokh Chothia

Dancer-choreographer Astad Deboo is doing his bit by keeping the spirits up this World Dance Day. Though he admits it hasn't been a productive time in terms of creating new work, he wants to ensure he can use his privilege to reach out to those less fortunate. "This image says to me let's rise above this [the Coronavirus] and not be bogged down at this time," Deboo told this diarist.

"While everyone is celebrating the day with video clips and events online, I have been keeping my body in shape through exercise and have been inundated with queries for fundraising for my foundation," he added.

Let's take it online

F&B venture Social in partnership with music firm Submerge is taking its annual festival The Exchange online with panelists who will be talking about the entertainment industry during the pandemic, the path ahead and online streaming. Scheduled over today and tomorrow, the panels include Monica Dogra, Ankytrixx, Tuhin Mehta and DJ Kan-i will feature on Facebook Live discussions.

"The festival has come to us at a crucial time, when everyone in the world has questions about their life and the future in general, with no answers or plans. I will talk about practical solutions to help monetise and sustain work," Ankytrixx, DJ and electronic music producer, told this diarist.

Putting the onus back on us

Singer Baba Sehgal has been actively producing tracks through the lockdown, often themed on the virus and preventive measures. This time, he has teamed up with Seattle-based singer Sonia Keshwani in a melodic anthem that puts the onus back on human beings.

Titled We are sorry, it drives home the point about environmental damage. "Though I have a rap segment in between, I have veered off my regular style for a melodic song this time. As for the theme, I think it's time we said sorry for all the damage that we have caused. Everything that is happening is a result of that," Sehgal told this diarist.

For artistes, from artistes

Sameera Iyengar

The COVID-19 crisis has hit performing arts hard and disrupted many livelihoods. To take matters into their own hands, artistes Shubha Mudgal, Aneesh Pradhan, Sameera Iyengar, Rahul Vora and Mona Irani along with Arundhati Ghosh, executive director, India Foundation for the Arts, organised a campaign called Assistance for Disaster Affected Artistes (ADAA). The aim was to support 100 artistes with a financial package over the next six months.

Quasar Thakore-Padamsee

Donations from 282 individuals and organisations (including those by city theatre artistes like Akarsh Khurana and Quasar Thakore-Padamsee) have resulted in them exceeding the set target. "Our funds now allow 132 artistes and their families across 10 states in India to be supported. We are currently in the process of finalising the artiste beneficiaries with the help of our partners. We will begin disbursement of funds through our distribution partner Indian Writer's Forum in early May — each beneficiary will receive a financial package of R30,000 each, over six months," Sameera Iyengar told this diarist, on behalf of the team.

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The Mumbai Police on Tuesday asked its personnels who are above 55 years of age to stay at home during the coronavirus lockdown. This comes after three Mumbai policemen died due to COVID-19. In its press note, Mumbai Police has also asked policemen above the age of 52 with previous medical conditions like diabetes and hypertension to stay indoors.

The Mumbai Police also stated in its press note that special hospitals are being designated for police personnel. "Also, all COVID hospitals in Mumbai have dedicated beds for Mumbai Police personnel." "Amenities like food packets, ration, hot water flasks, pandals at check points etc. are being provided to all personnel on frontline duties. Accommodation facilities are being provided to all police personnel who wish to stay back," read the press release from the Mumbai Police.

It also informed that multivitamin and protein supplements are being provided for 20,000 personnel to strengthen their immunity system. Also, a Special Covid Helpline number has been set up for police personnel and their families at the control room to resolve any doubts or issues they might have related to COVID-19. Medical professionals have also been associated with it.

On Monday, a 57-year-old head constable of the Mumbai Police died of COVID-19. A 52-year-old head constable succumbed to the disease on Sunday, while a 57-year-old constable died on Saturday. The Uddhav Thackeray-led government has granted Rs. 50 lakh ex-gratia amount to all personnel who lose their lives fighting COVID-19.

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This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever

The State Transport Minister Anil Parab on Tuesday said that the Maharashtra government will facilitate the return of 1,780 stranded students from Kota in Rajasthan. "1780 students from Maharashtra are stuck in Kota, Rajasthan due to lockdown for precaution against COVID-19," Parab tweeted. "As directed by Honourable CM Uddhav Thackeray, 92 buses of MSRTC fleet will leave on April 29 from Dhule to rescue the students and bring them back home," he added.

Earlier, the governments of Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh also facilitated the return of their stranded students from Kota.

India is under a nation-wide lockdown which was imposed on March 25 and later extended to May 3 to stem the spread of coronavirus.

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In efforts to provide assistance to the medical fraternity in fighting the battle against the deadly Coronavirus pandemic, Western Railway has come up with various ingenious equipment, including high-quality PPEs, steel beds for patients, isolation coaches, reusable masks, sanitizers, etc.

Continuing with their efforts, Western Railway's Lower Parel Workshop has now manufactured a booth to collect the swab sample of COVID-19 infected patients. This booth enables doctors and medicos to take the sample/swab without exposing themselves to the affected patient.

According to Ravinder Bhakar - Chief Public Relations Officer of Western Railway, a request to make a kiosk with the concept of distance sample collection had come from Western Railway's Jagjivan Ram Hospital, which is a nominated 172-bed Coronavirus hospital. The work was done on war footing mode right from arranging the material, fabrication, and furnishing and was completed within 6 hours. The design has been developed by two teams of workshop engineers (Carriage Repair and Basic Training Centre), who manufactured this booth with the available material in the workshop.

The booth is very sturdy and robust & completely sealed from the front three sides, to ensure that the frontline medical staff is totally isolated from the patient. The structure of the booth consists of a strong fabricated structure of MS square tubes, covered externally with plywood on all sides, and a rear door. The upper half portion of the front side has been covered with a 6 mm transparent acrylic sheet. All material used for repair of coaches has been used in this fabrication. The front side transparent acrylic sheet has been provided with two holes on which rubber hand gloves have been permanently fitted. The team worked against the clock to make the Sample Collection Booth as fast as they can and on April 28, 2020, the newly manufactured booth has been delivered to Jagjivan Ram Hospital at Mumbai Central.

Although it is a coach repair workshop, in this time of crisis, it has contributed in making many other materials helpful for our frontline warriors, working day in and out in hospitals beside our employees. The manufacturer team was led by Shri Arun Kumar Singh - Dy. Chief Mechanical Engineer of the Workshop, and consisted of his technical experts Shri Prashant Deshmukh, Shri Satish Samrut, Shri Arvind Javadia, Shri Sanjai Bhavsar, Shri Manoj Yadav, Shri Mahesh Bhatia, Shri Pradeep Tamboli, Shri Natrajan and along with 10 other members in the team contributed in this effort.

Western Railway salutes the commitment and dedication of its employees who are constantly working to fight this ongoing battle with the deadly Coronavirus Pandemic despite putting their lives at risk.

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The city unit of the Young Mens’ Christian Association (YMCA) has offered its well-furnished International Guest House of 75 Rooms to house their Doctors, Health Care Professionals and Asymptomatic patients. In addition, we have provided masks, gloves and medical equipment to the Nair and Kasturba Hospitals’ for the medical professionals working on the frontlines.

In the first phase of the relief operations, we have been able to cater to 20,000 persons (4000 packets) by providing them with dry rations and groceries. Cooked food to the slum dwellers, daily wage earners, migrant workers, street beggars, rag pickers and construction workers has crossed 1,00,000 (One Lakh) threshold.

A special mention here is of our volunteer team ably led by our regular ‘Dhobiwala’ (Laundry Man) who have earned the sobriquet, ‘Scooter Saviors’ has enabled us to reach the unreached pockets from CST to Colaba Market right up to the slums at Cuffe Parade.

The victims have now become saviors. Thanks to the ladies who are housed at YMCA Sharan, a shelter for destitute women run with the help of BMC have reached out to the unreached in the slums at Sakinaka.

Our counselors trained at the Counseling Institute at Navi Mumbai are available on call daily for those who are in distress, stress and undergoing anxiety symptoms during this lock-down period. 

“We acknowledge the contributions of our partners who have joined us in this mission during this time of the ‘virus crisis’ - Muthoot Finance, ATE Chandra Foundation, Rotary Club of Bombay, Rotary Club of Mumbai Central, Rotary Club of Queen’s Necklace, Rotary Club of Versova and Rotary Club of Mumbai Elegant. A special thanks to the BMC, Mumbai Police and Navi Mumbai Police who helped us with the permissions and the necessary assistance. As we begin our next phase, we would like to enlist the support of Mumbaikars in this hour of need,” Paul George, general secretay/CEO told Mid-Day.

The Bombay YMCA blessed with its vast infrastructure, network and committed team of staff and volunteers at strategic locations ranging from Colaba to Navi Mumbai was able to promptly and efficiently respond to the pandemic that gripped our city.

Historically Helpful
The Bombay YMCA since its inception in 1875 has always risen to the occasion whenever calamities have struck the city.

Beginning with Relief operations during World War I & II, the Army barracks were maintained by the YMCA and the Army Officers used the YMCA at Colaba for its operations. Over the past 145 years our experience gained in the 3 R’s - Rescue, Relief and Rehabilitation has grown exponentially.

During the earthquake at the Latur and Osmanabad districts in 1993, Bombay YMCA led in the relief and later rehabilitation of two villages of over 200 families including the construction of the primary school and the community centre. We were recently recognized for our efforts by the then Chief Minister, Shri. Sharad Pawar.

When the communal riots broke out in the early 90s the YMCA was called in as Peacemakers between the communities in Agripada and Mumbai Central. The Army used the premises of the Procter YMCA at Agripada as their base for their operation. In addition, Bombay YMCA constructed close to 50 tenements at Ramabai Nagar, Ghatkopar in collaboration with a major newspaper group.

Each time the city was submerged due to the deluge and came to a standstill, the YMCA opened its centres/Branches providing shelter and food for the stranded.

During the terrorist attack of 26/11, the YMCA was home to many Mumbaikars and foreign nationals at various YMCA centres spread across the city.

How to contact:

For further details and more information follow us on Instagram:@ymcabombay, Twitter: @ymcabombay, Facebook: @ymcabombay, Email: generalsecretary@ymcabombay.com.

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Mid-day online journalists interact with the frontline workers in a new series 'Real heroes of coronavirus'. Media photographers, reporters, railway staff and medical workers tell their stories of grit, determination and every-day challenges in times of the pandemic.

Mid-day senior photographer Shadab Khan is out on the field capturing striking photos of people, health-workers, the police and the city as part of his daily assignment at a time when coronavirus pandemic is spreading rapidly in Mumbai and the entire nation is under lockdown.

 

 

 

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Alhamdulillah just got to know that my covid-19 swab test report is Negative by the grace of god. I tested my self 2 days ago during the special covid-19 test for Media persons who are on field by BMC medical team in Mumbai as our services comes under essential services during this pandemic we have to work on field and visit to all over the city for relentlessly bringing out timely good pictures, news and updates daily, through all the perils and under the most trying conditions. Special thanks to @my_bmc @cmomaharashtra_ @middayindia

A post shared by Shadab Khan (@photographer_shadab) onApr 25, 2020 at 3:53am PDT

We spoke to Shadab Khan about his work and what it's like to be a news photographer in times of pandemic.

Here's an excerpt from the interview.

How has the global pandemic impacted your work?

The coronavirus outbreak hasn't affected our work as such. Since we come under the essential service providers and ours is a field job, it's the same daily routine. The focus is more on pandemic photos as we visit sensetive areas and try to get pictures of people who may have broken lockdown rules and also capture shots of how the police are handling the situation. Nowadays, we also visit contaminated areas to get photos of medical staffs conducting COVID-19 tests and get visuals of the epidemic situation in Mumbai. For us, the work has only increased due to the outbreak of the global pandemic.

Nowadays, do you prepare yourself mentally before going out on assignments?

To be honest, there is no mental preparation as such. But I offer prayers five times a day and pray that I go safely and come back home safely. As a media-person, I also consume a lot of news and keep reading about the International guidelines laid down for photojournalists as to what precautions should be taken. I do this as it helps me to stay motivated in the fight against coronavirus. It is the first time that I am experiencing a pandemic which has changed our lives. I have never covered something like this ever before. Although I have covered riots and other sensetive events, a pandemic that takes place only once in 100 years is a different experience. I have been following international reports and guidelines to take precaution and prepare mentally to fight the COVID-19 crisis.

Shadab makes sure that his equipment, bag and mobile are sanitised in order to take precautions against COVID-19

How do you protect yourself?

Face mask, hand sanitisers and hand gloves are mandatory when I am leaving the house. With the increasing number of cases in Mumbai, we have to take extra precautions as our camera equipment is metal. While shooting, we are constantly handling the camera with our hands and our eyes are exposed when we are focusing to click the pictures. To ensure our safety, we sanitise the camera every two to three hours. Besides the equipment, I also sanitise my mobile phone with a spray sanitiser that I carry with me. After completimg a shooting assignment in a contaminated area, I make sure that the camera equipment is sanitised before keeping them in the bag.

Do you take any precaution while heading back home after doing on-field reporting?

Though it is risk to be outside during the pandemic, the real challenge begins when we get back home to be with our families. Since the outbreak of the coronavirus, I have isolated myself to another room and make sure that I maintain social distancing with my family members. While leaving for work and after coming back home, I don't hug my children. Since day one, I am practising self-quarantine to keep my family safe and away from any risk. Infact, I take more precautions at home than I do while I go out. The epidemic is so dangerous that one cannot be sure how the infection will strike.

 

 

 

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A man sleeping outside his house during lockdown to prevent the spread of new coronavirus at Vakola in Mumbai, Wednesday, April 15, 2020. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday extended the world's largest coronavirus lockdown to head off the epidemic's peak, with officials racing to make up for lost time. PIC/SHADAB KHAN Paparazzi#Fashion#bollywood#lovemyjob#photography#Mumbai#India#middayindia#covid19#fightagainstcorona

A post shared by Shadab Khan (@photographer_shadab) onApr 16, 2020 at 8:09am PDT

During the COVID-19 coverage did you face scary moments? Which has been your scariest moment?

It is scary to visit crowded localities nowadays to cover the pandemic. In the beginning it was not a problem but since the police have imposed strict rules in these areas, we are facing issues. On few occasions, people in these localities have attacked and abused us, blaming the media for the strict police action. But all localities are not the same. We keep calm and ensure that we don't fight back or argue with the people when faced with a hostile situation. To ensure our own safety, we move out of the place quickly if we are confronted by the crowd.

Did you face challenges from the police while covering the COVID-19 pandemic?

In the beginning the police officials were not aware that the media comes under the essential services list and stopped us from entering certain areas which led to arguments sometimes. But gradually they understood and let us do our jobs. When they see the cameras and we show them our press cards, they ask us where we are going and all, that's it.

How is your department and the organisation supporting you?

We are getting the support of our department and the organisation in every possible way. I have been working in mid-day for 15 years and the organisation has been always supportive, our managers do not pressurise us for assignments. My reporting officer calls twice a day and inquires about my whereabouts and tells me to be extra careful while visiting contaminated zones and avoid going to sensitive areas frequently. We are always told to ensure safety first before work.

Shadab feels that practicing social distancing in Dharavi where people are cramped in small houses is nearly impossible

Although he covers different areas every day, Shadab makes it a point to visit a contaminated area at least once a day to check if any new development has taken place. Speaking about Dharavi, which has emerged as one of the biggest contaminated zones in Mumbai, Shadab said, "I visit Dharavi to see how the labourers are doing and how the small scale industries are coping with the COVID-19 epidemic"

"Everyone is talking about social distancing but it is not possible in Dharavi. Most houses in the locality are 8X8 small houses with 8 to 10 people cramped inside. In order to click a picture, one has to stand at the door and shoot, social distancing in areas such as Dharavi is almost impossible. The lanes in Dharavi are so narrow that if people are coming from the other side it is impossible to walk past them without making physical contact," added Shadab.

Besides Dharavi, Shadab carries out his photo assignments in Bandra, Sion and Wadala.

What is your message to the general public?

We are out on the roads because we have a responsibility as essential service providers. I would request people to stay home as far as possible. Only by staying home will you be safe! Follow the guidelines laid down by the government and maintain social distancing.

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