NE NEWS SERVICE
MUMBAI, APRIL 20
Mumbai Mayor Kishori Pednekar on Monday decided to place herself under quarantine after a few journalists with whom she had interacted recently tested positive for coronavirus.
At least 53 media persons from Mumbai have tested positive for coronavirus, a civic official said earlier in the day. During a special camp organised at Azad Maidan on April 16-17 for COVID-19 testing of journalists, the Brihan Mumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) collected swab samples of 171 media persons, including electronic and print media journalists, photographers and cameramen.
“Out of the 171 media persons, 53 tested positive for coronavirus,” BMC spokesperson Vijay Khabale said, adding most of those who tested positive are asymptomatic at present.
In a video message, Pednekar said she had attended the special COVID-19 testing camp at Azad Maidan but tested negative for the infection.
“I and my driver tested negative (for COVID-19). However, the test reports of the journalists with whom I interacted in the past four-five days have came positive, and hence as a precautionary measure I have decided to quarantine myself at the official residence at Rani Baug,” she said, adding she would perform her duties from home.
She said all the staffers in her office will undergo COVID-19 test on the fifth and 14th day as per the new protocol.
Khabale said all the media persons infected with coronavirus will be kept in isolation and process is underway to find out suitable places for the purpose. Efforts are on to trace their high and low-risk contacts.
