Ghatkopar housing society whose resident tested positive for Covid-19 faces social boycott
Maids told they will be sacked if they work there
Housekeeping personnel told not to collect garbage
Delivery boys being warned the building is infected
Children report being kept out of play areas

[email protected]
TWEETS @lata_MIRROR

As if coronavirus was not enough, now there is cruelty blowing in the wind.

A housing society, one of whose residents tested positive for coronavirus on Friday, has been placed under a social lock-down by its neighbouring buildings. The 64-year-old man’s wife and son too have since tested positive and all three are being treated at Kasturba Hospital.

Maids are being warned that if they visit any apartment in that housing society they will lose their employment in other buildings. House-keeping personnel have been asked to stay away and delivery boys are being warned of deadly infection if they delivered in the ‘marked’ society. Even children have reported being kept out of play areas.

The residents of the building facing the boycott on Saturday visited the Tilak Nagar police station to lodge a complaint. While the police declined to take a formal complaint, a counselling session will be organised for the neighbouring buildings today. “I have already spoken with the residents. I will also ask civic officials to pay a visit. In such difficult times we must be able to stand together,” said Senior Police Inspector, Tilaknagar police station, Sushil Patil.

A resident of the building facing the boycott said none of the maids and house-keeping staff turned up for work on Friday. “The word was out on Friday about the coronavirus positive case, but we did not make the connection. However, when maids did not turn up on Saturday too we began making inquiries. That is when we realised that they were being asked to not serve our building,” he said.

The resident said the society has followed every BMC instruction – from getting the entire society disinfected to distributing masks and hand-sanitisers. “We expected our neighbours to help us in this difficult time. But exactly the opposite is happening. We have been ostracised,” he said.

A maid said she was told she would lose employment is six households if she visited any house in the boycotted building. A cook was told to think of her own well-being and that of her family.

Mumbai Mirror is withholding the name of the housing society and the people spoken to for this story.

According to BMC officials, 460 houses in three buildings in the vicinity of the housing society where the corona positive case was detected were surveyed and over 800 people screened.

courtesy Mumbai Mirror