Since the BMC sealed seven slum pockets in K West ward almost a month ago, the area has not seen a major spike in cases, which points towards a flattening of the COVID-19 curve. Though very few cases have been reported in most of these pockets over the past two weeks, civic officials fear the opening up of the city might undo the efforts.

Earlier, the civic body used to seal small portions of slums, about 50 to 100 houses, but as cases continued to increase, for better management and as per the recommendations of the central team, ward offices started to seal whole slums. A month ago, BMC had closed the entrance to the K West ward and also the small lanes in the area — Nehru Nagar, Versova, Anand Nagar, Gaondevi Dongri, Gilbert Hill, Juhu Galli and Juhu Koliwada — which has a total population of 2 lakh.