The novel coronavirus outbreak has hit Maharashtra the hardest, with the total case tally crossing 80,000 as of Saturday. Of these, 42224 cases remain active as per data provided by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
Within the state, Mumbai is one of the worst affected areas, with the more than half of Maharashtra's cases concentrated in the coastal city.
As the number of cases continue to rise, there have been several concerning allegations that have surfaced. There are now claims that hospitals are fast becoming overburdened in the city, and recent videos, purportedly from Mumbai's Lokmanya Tilak Municipal General (LTMG) Hospital in Sion and KEM Hospital in Parel showed patients sharing beds due to a lack of space.
Another video showed a corpse lying next to a living patient in a Covid-19 ward at Rajawadi Hospital in Ghatkopar.
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On Saturday, Mumbai Mayor Kishori Pednekar said that people should not seek a hospital bed the moment they test positive.
"Only those who are in critical and emergency conditions should get beds in hospitals. As soon as people test positive, they think they need a bed but that is not how it works. There is a lot of pressure on hospitals," she was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.
A BMC cirular from June 4 adds that asymptomatic individuals or those with mild symptoms could remain under home isolation if possible.
But even as the available space dwindles, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is working to make more facilities available. News spaces, including a facility at Mulund are still being worked on, and the BMC is also planning to have a dedicated non-COVID-19 hospital set up.
