Mumbai reports 20,971 fresh Covid infections

Mumbai on Friday reported 20,971 new Covid-19 infections, 84% of which was asymptomatic, according to the civic body data. In the last 24 hours, the city reported six deaths, data showed.Mumbai mayor Kishori Pednekar said there has been no decision on night curfew. A final call on imposing further restrictions, which ministers have so far ruled out, will only be taken after chief minister Uddhav Thackeray's meeting with PM Modi, the mayor said.

Municipal commissioner Iqbal Chahal said there is no immediate need for imposing lockdown in Mumbai as the bed occupancy rate, oxygen requirement and the number of Covid deaths remain low. During the first and second waves the decision to impose lockdown was taken on the basis of case positivity rate, but this criterion cannot be applied for the third wave which started from December 21, 2021, Chahal told a Marathi news channel. On Friday, the BMC issued fresh COVID-19 guidelines and said that patients with mild symptoms can undergo home isolation and need not take institutional quarantine. "Asymptomatic low-risk contacts of infected individuals need not undergo COVID test... Clinically assigned mild cases are patients with upper respiratory tract symptoms with or without fever, without shortness of breath and having oxygen saturation at room air of more than 93 per cent," the fresh guidelines said.