It is not just the dead who are missing in the city. While the government reconciles anomalies in deaths recorded in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s (BMC) COVID-19 data, as many as 1,000-2,000 of the city’s reported coronavirus patients are currently untraceable.
These patients are neither admitted to hospitals or COVID-19 care centres, nor are they dead. In many cases, their contact numbers or addresses on record are incorrect.
As of Monday, Mumbai had reported 59,293 COVID-19 cases. When a person tests positive, the lab uploads results directly to the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) portal, based on which the BMC updates its data. The civic epidemiology cell then alerts the wards concerned.
In Mumbai, since most cases are asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic, the patients are advised home quarantine. Currently, three lakh people are in home quarantine. However, 1,000-2,000 such patients are not traceable.
Ward mismatch
Additional municipal commissioner Ashwini Bhide, in charge of the COVID-19 war room, said, “In some incidents, the case is actually from one ward but has been shown against another ward on the ICMR list. But some patients actually cannot be traced — the person is neither admitted to hospital or a care centre, nor have they died. We particularly look at cases that are shown as active for more than 30 days but cannot be traced.”
In some cases, patients who do not live in the city have given addresses of local relatives or acquaintances.
“We are trying our best to get them (untraceable cases) reconciled. Some are done, some are ongoing. We send the list to each ward every week and ask for updates. When we find such cases, we assign teachers to make calls and try to trace these patients,” Ms. Bhide said.
The BMC had reviewed its data and reconciled around 32,000 cases on May 25. “But it’s a very overwhelming exercise for wards to give accurate information. There are anomalies every time we take information,” she said.
Listed as recoveries
F North ward has around 80 untraceable cases, while H East ward has around 35. Many wards have even added these untraceable patients to the list of recoveries. “We are aware that wards are showing them as recoveries,” Ms. Bhide said.
Joint municipal commissioner Ashutosh Salil said they are attempting to contact all the untraceables. “But many people have given incorrect contact numbers and addresses. We have a team of teachers making calls, but half the numbers are not available or are wrong. We may have to ask the police for help. We will take a call on that.”
