NEW DELHI: Attributing the recent surge in
Covid-19 cases to pollution, chief minister
Arvind Kejriwal on Friday said that Delhi government would be taking multiple interventions next week to check the spread of the viral disease. While testing and
contact tracing had been intensified for early detection of infected individuals, the government was also closely monitoring the management of patients in hospitals.
The number of deaths in a single day touched 104 on Thursday, while 7,000-8,000 fresh cases are being reported in the city every day. Kejriwal hoped that the situation would be controlled in the next 10 days.
However, the CM did not explain what steps the government was planning to take to control the sustained spike in cases and deaths. A meeting of Delhi Disaster Management Authority is likely to be held next week where the existing scenario would be discussed with the members of the expert panel formed by the Centre and appropriate decisions would be taken.
An official said it was unlikely that Delhi would witness mini-lockdowns or major economic curbs because making people strictly follow guidelines and adopt Covid-appropriate behaviour was more effective in checking the spread of the virus.
Right from the start, Delhi government has maintained that lockdown is not an effective solution to handle the spread of the disease because it affects livelihoods and makes the life of people miserable. The CM had, on multiple occasions, underlined that people would have to learn to live with the novel coronavirus and follow all guidelines to protect themselves.
“The situation was under control till last week, but cases are rising now. I’m worried. Delhi government will take several preventive measures in the coming days to bring normalcy. I hope that in the next 7-10 days the number of cases decline and the situation is under control,” said Kejriwal.
Since the beginning of November, Delhi has been witnessing a massive jump in the number of Covid-19 cases. On November 11, more than 9,500 cases were reported and the positivity rate was 15.2%.
Officials said multiple factors had fuelled this spike, including aggressive testing and contact tracing. “For each Covid-positive person, up to 20 contacts are being traced and tested. Contact tracing was never done at this huge scale in the city. Pollution, coupled with winter, has increased respiratory illnesses due to which more people are getting themselves tested for the infection,” said an official.
Massive crowds in markets, where many people were spotted violating social distancing norms and Covid-appropriate behaviour, is also believed to have contributed to the recent spike.
Delhi government has banned community celebration of Chhath Puja at ghats, river banks, temples and other public places as a precautionary measure to curb the spread of the virus. All officials on the field have been instructed to ensure that the order is complied with strictly.