Mumbai, Jul 11 (IANS): After the World Health Organisation (WHO) acknowledged the manner in which the Covid-19 spread was arrested in Mumbai's Dharavi, Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Saturday said that Asia's largest slum has now emerged as "a role model" for the whole world.

"The densely populated area like Dharavi has not only shown the world that through collective efforts Covid-19 can be controlled, but has also made a name for itself globally as a role model in the fight against corona," he said.

Thackeray also showered praise on the integrated struggles undertaken by the BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation, various NGOs, volunteers and the local people of Dharavi, saying: "This is the success of your efforts."

"Such examples of human triumph over a global pandemic can inspire others," he said, as he lauded the toil that went into controlling the spread of the virus which earned global recognition for Dharavi as a role model, and vowed that the "war against the virus" will be further intensified.

In a pat for the BMC and the state government, WHO Director-General Tedros A. Ghebreyesus, late on Friday, made a laudatory reference to the achievements of Dharavi in Mumbai among other similar examples globally as the world continues to fight the pandemic.

"Even in Dharavi, a densely packed area in Mumbai, a strong focus on community engagement and the basics of testing, tracing, isolating and treating all those that are sick is key to breaking the chains of transmission, and suppressing the virus," he said.

In this context, Ghebreyesus pointed out that there are many, many examples from around the world that have shown that even if the Covid-19 outbreak is very intense, it can still be brought back under control, as in Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, New Zealand, Italy, Spain and South Korea.