With Mumbai and its suburbs reopening slowly, about 2,000 tourists reached Matheran on Sunday, only to be sent back by the hill station administration citing Covid-19 rules. But the decision did not go down well with the locals whose survival solely depends on visitors. They held a protest demanding that the guests be let in.

The residents of Matheran, a popular tourist destination about 80 km from Mumbai, have suffered huge losses ever since Covid-19 struck last March. Some of them, particularly horse carriage owners, have been surviving on doles from good Samaritans from the city.