Covid third wave here already: says Mumbai Mayor

Mumbai, Sep 7
The third wave of Covid is already upon Mumbai, the city's Mayor has said, pointing to a sudden spike in cases. "The third-wave of Covid-19 is not coming, it is here," said Kishori Pednekar, adding that an announce-ment regarding the matter had already been made in Nagpur, ANI reported.
Speaking of the coming festive season in Maha-rashtra, the Mayor urged people to remain in their homes.  The Mandals have been asked to allow only 10 people and have them work in shifts, she said.
Mumbai has logged 28 per cent of cases recorded in August in just the first six days of September.
On Monday, Mumbai reported 379 fresh cases of coronavirus and five fatalities, reported news agency Press Trust of India, quoting an official of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation.
The new additions pushed the total in the city to 7,46,725, the deaths to 15,998, and the number of recoveries to 7,24,494.
The surge comes ahead of the festival season, when there are concerns of massive spike. The first wave of Covid last year had started amid the festive season.
Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray has urged cancellation of political rallies and religious events in view of a possible surge.
"Public health is very important. Festivals can be celebrated in future. The situation can worsen if the cases of Covid increase. One must give priority to the health of the people so we can avoid the third wave," Mr Thackeray was quoted as saying by news agency Press Trust of India.
"One must not bring about a situation where strict restrictions need to be imposed."
"We have an idea of how the second wave of Covid started," he added. Courtesy NDTV