Even while COVID-19 cases continue to rise on an average of 1,500 per day, Municipal Commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal has assured that the city is very much under control. "The city will have around 27,000 active cases, much less than projected and there are more than 44,000 beds available," he said during a first video conference since he took charge.

"The projected number of active cases was 44,000 till May end. But the number of active cases in Mumbai is 22,000 and it will be around 26,000-27,000 till month-end. As per the ICMR studies, only 30 per cent of patients require oxygen support while 10 per cent need ICU and ventilators. Mumbai has around 14,000 beds in hospitals and 30,000 in CCC2 for mild or asymptomatic patients. So don't fear numbers. Even the death rate will be below 3 per cent soon," he asserted.