At Rajiv Gandhi Super Speciality Hospital on Saturday.

A five-member committee formed by the Delhi government to assess Delhi hospitals’ preparedness and suggest ways to strengthen infrastructure for Covid cases has said in a report that Delhi will need around 15,000 beds to cater to patients from the city by June 15.

There are 8,637 beds for Covid patients across the city so far. Of these, 4,225 are occupied.

Dr Arun Gupta, member of the committee and president of Delhi Medical Council, said the assessment was based on the current case trajectory.

“The aim of the committee was to identify how many beds will be needed in a month’s time. As of June 15, the city will need about 15,000 beds based on projections. This number, however, can only cater to patients in the city and not to those who come from other parts of the country. At present, not many patients are coming to Delhi because of the lockdown. We have given the suggestion that hospitals in Delhi can only meet the demands of city patients,” he said.

Delhi government sources also said the committee had suggested that beds in hospitals be reserved for patients from Delhi.

“Beds in Delhi will fill up within 3 days if there is no restriction on who can avail treatment. This is an emergency situation, and a cabinet meeting will be held to discuss the recommendations of the report,” said an official.

The move, however, will be difficult to implement as Delhi has several Central government hospitals, including AIIMS, Safdarjung Hospital, RML Hospital and Lady Hardinge Medical College — all of which are treating Covid patients.

On Monday, CM Arvind Kejriwal had asked people for suggestions regarding sealing Delhi’s borders and on reserving hospital beds for Delhiites. The government received more than 7.5 lakh suggestions

“Overwhelmingly, people have said that beds in Delhi hospitals should be for people from Delhi. The number of cases in the city has risen very quickly over the past few days, and there is anxiety among residents,” an official said.