BMC to Randomly Test Citizens For COVID
The BMC has said that Mumbai will test people for COVID-19 randomly at crowded places without their consent.
The BMC has ordered that they will test people for COVID-19 randomly at crowded places without their consent. This strict decision has been taken because there is a huge increase in COVID infections in Maharashtra. The BMC has said that people can not refuse taking the test. If they refuse, it would mean they broke a rule under the Epidemic Act, 1897. Hence, action shall be initiated against the offender. The Rapid antigen testing (RAT) will be done on people. RAT test is done by taking a sample from the respiratory tract of a person. The test detects the presence of the coronavirus and indicates whether or not a person has been infected. However, it is capable of giving more false negatives.
The train stations where mandatory and random RAT will be done are: Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus, Mumbai Central, Dadar Western and Central, Bandra Terminal, Andheri, Borivali and Lokmanya Tilak Terminus, Kurla.
The bus depots where RAT will be conducted are Mumbai Central, Parel, Borivali and Kurla.
400 rapid antigen tests have been set in malls. The cost of testing for coronavirus at malls will be paid by those who are getting tested, the municipal body said in the order. In other areas except malls, the cost of testing will be paid by the civic body BMC.
Currently the Uddhav Thackeray is not giving any break-up data or details on hotspot locations, it is suspected that several strains of mutated virus are at work there, which accounts for such a sharp rise in numbers.
