Coronavirus in Mumbai: 5 BEST staffers infected in one day, total no. cases now 13

Mumbai: As many as five staffers of the Brihanmumbai Electricity Supply and Transport (BEST) undertaking tested positive for coronavirus on Monday, the highest number of cases in a single day so far, taking the count to 13. Of the five cases, two were reported from the Parel staff quarters, which were sealed last Friday by civic officials, after the mother of a former BEST employee living in the quarters had also succumbed to the disease the previous day. 

One of the infected staffers is a conductor attached to the Colaba depot, while the another is a mechanical engineer from the maintenance department at the Dadar workshop.

The other three cases are three conductors, one each from the Deonar, Vikhroli and Santacruz depots respectively. 

All the five infected patients are asymptomatic and have been kept in institutional quarantine. A senior medical official associated with the undertaking also informed, none of the patients seem to have been infected in the course of duty but more likely to have contracted the infection while on leave, by coming in contact with other infected people.  

“Of the total 13 cases, there was only one case which was severe. The remaining cases are either asymptomatic or mild,” said the BEST medical official. 

The BEST management has tracked down the employees and colleagues who were in close contact with the infected staffers and have put them into home quarantine. 

Meanwhile, the undertaking has conducted medical check-ups for more than 7,000 employees at the dispensaries and as many as 252 employees have been placed under home quarantine as a result. As many as 100 have completed their quarantine period and are expected to resume duty shortly.

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