On Thursday, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) sealed-down two residences in an apartment with tin sheets after a resident tested positive for coronavirus in Domlur, Bengaluru.
However, the BBMP had to remove it after residents of the housing society took to social media to post such images, leaving the civic authorities red-faced.
A resident of a housing complex in Bengaluru posted images of BBMP officials sealing down two flats in the complex with tin sheets after one resident test positive for the coronavirus. Satish Sangameshwaran posted two photographs on social media, in which BBMP officials were seen ‘sealing’ down the residence of a coronavirus person.
BBMP sealing done in our building for a confirmed Covid case. Lady with 2 small children, next door neighbours are an aged couple. What if there is a fire, @BBMPCOMM ? Understand the need for containment, but this is an extremely dangerous fire hazard – please address urgently. pic.twitter.com/pCDMn5Pefl
— Satish Sangameswaran (@satishs) July 23, 2020
The resident soon alerted the BBMP Commissioner on the issue and pointed out that it would be extremely dangerous if there was a fire hazard and asked what would senior citizens or children do when such a situation arises.
Soon, netizens joined the residents of the apartment to appraise the situation to the BBMP officials and demanded them to remove the barricades as soon as possible.
As the news spread, BBMP officials soon took notice of the lapse and rushed to the spot to remove the sheets. BBMP Commissioner N Manjunatha Prasad said that he has asked to remove the barricade immediately. He also added that the BBMP was committed to treating all persons with dignity. The purpose of containment is to protect the infected and to ensure uninfected are safe, he said in a tweet.
The BBMP commissioner said action will be taken against officials for the dereliction of the duty.
We are committed to address any issues that result in stigma. Apologies for the over enthusiasm of the local staff. 2/2 #BBMP #Bengaluru #Covid #StayHomeStaySafe @CMofKarnataka @DHFWKA @BBMP_MAYOR @iaspankajpandey
— N. Manjunatha Prasad,IAS (@BBMPCOMM) July 23, 2020
Hours after BBMP Commissioner promised of removing barricades, the BBMP officials visited the housing complex and removed the barricades put up across the doors of the residents of the coronavirus patients.
Satish, who had flagged the matter confirmed the same as well. Taking to Twitter again, Satish said that BBMP team visited the residence and removed the tin sheets from outside both the flats and the staircase access area.
This is an exceptionally exceptionally graceful gesture, Sir. Coming on top of the quick action taken to resolve the issue, it inspires a lot of confidence. Thank you for all that you and your team are doing. https://t.co/lks7MgyNYd
— Satish Sangameswaran (@satishs) July 23, 2020
Another social media user also posted a image showing that the sheets have been removed from the doors.
The garden city of Bengaluru, till Thursday, reported a total of 39,200 coronavirus cases, while active cases stand at 29,090. The death tally in Bengaluru stands at 783 out of the total 1,616 deaths in the state due to the coronavirus pandemic.
