With 2 Fresh COVID-19 Cases, 9 Infected So Far in Mumbai’s Dharavi

Nine COVID-19 cases recorded in Dharavi.

(Photo Courtesy: Twitter)

Two more people have tested positive for COVID-19 in Mumbai’s Dharavi on Wednesday, 8 April, taking the total number of cases recorded in the area to nine. Among the new patients are a 25-year-old man from Mukund Nagar locality and a 35-year-old man from Dhanwada chawl.

A civic official told PTI that the patient from Mukund Nagar was a high risk contact of a 49-year-old man, who earlier tested positive for coronavirus, and was kept at a quarantine facility.

Two other patients from Dharavi, had tested positive just a day prior, on 7 April. Both the cases emerged from Dr Baliga Nagar in Dharavi, where the first COVID-19 case was recorded. The first patient from this area, a 56-year-old garment shop owner, died on 1 April.

The two patients from Dr Baliga Nagar belong to the same family and are related to a 30-year-old woman who had tested positive earlier from the same area. One, an 80-year-old man, who is her father, and the other, a 49-year-old man, who is her brother.

Dr Baliga Nagar was sealed off by the BMC about a week ago when the first case was reported. At least 380 flats are a part of the containment zone in the area.

Other cases recorded in Dharavi are that of a 35-year-old doctor who is undergoing treatment, and a 48-year-old man from the Mukund Nagar slum. A 21-year-old lab technician was also found COVID-19 positive and also a municipal sweeper who is a resident of Worli but was posted in Dharavi when he tested positive.

The first patient from Dharavi, the 56-year-old who died, was found to have interacted with members of Tablighi Jamaat who had attended the Delhi meeting. At least 10 people from the Jamaat had allegedly visited the businessman’s residence in March. From there, the group had allegedly left for Kerala.

The Mumbai police has been working on tracing these individuals to find out their status.