BMC to enforce strict SOPs to curb Covid cases in Mumbai ahead of New Year

MUMBAI: With Christmas and New Year around the corner, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) plans to bring in guidelines, strict norms, rules and regulations to curb rising Covid-19 cases in Mumbai. With the “Unlock” process in motion, one is seeing rise in late-night parties, with pubs and nightclubs often violating the Covid-related norms. The BMC, in fact, raided a few pubs and hotels violating social distancing and other norms, and penalised them.

Taking note of clubs operating till late night in violation of the Epidemic Act and the Covid-19 guidelines, the BMC plans to impose night curfew in the Maximum City. Speaking with The Daily Guardian, Suresh Kakani, Additional Municipal Commissioner of BMC, said, “BMC is working round the corner to make citizens understand the basic Covid norms to be followed from wearing masks and using hand sanitizer to maintaining social distancing. Some pubs found violating norms were raided. In every ward we are keeping two officers to keep an eye on such places and after 20th a call about Christmas and 31st December will be taken accordingly.”

Generally it’s observed that during festive times the number of corona cases increase, with people in masses coming out in markets for shopping. The BMC has decided to keep a vigil to ensure strict compliance of Covid-19 guidelines by these establishments, by deploying teams/squads to check compliance of SOPs, Covid-19 safety protocol especially ahead of Christmas and New Year’s Eve.