The city witnessed 486 new COVID-19 cases in 24 hours, taking the total number of cases to 6,28,838, stated a health bulletin released by the Delhi government on Thursday.
Also, 19 more deaths have been reported in 24 hours, taking the total number of deaths to 10,644. Of the total cases, 6,14,026 people have recovered and there are 4,168 active cases. This is the 14th day in a row that the number of new cases has been less than 1,000. The positivity rate of COVID-19 cases was 0.63% on Thursday and the overall positivity till now was 6.87%, as per the bulletin.
The Delhi government has also ordered the reopening of all medical colleges under it.
To begin with, first-year MBBS/BDS students will be called in a staggered manner and teaching and practical will be completed in one and a half to two months from the date of re-opening of colleges. “Subsequently final-year students will be allowed to join college. Final-year students will be eligible to appear in final-year annual exams on successful training, on the passing of which they will be eligible to join as interns,” the order said. After it, the process will be initiated for permitting second-year MBBS and BDS students to rejoin college.
In a related development, a dry run for the COVID-19 vaccination will be done in different healthcare facilities in the city on Friday.
Out of the total 13,838 beds available for COVID-19 treatment here, 12,228 were vacant. There were 3,118 containment zones here as of Thursday. A total of 135 beds reserved for COVID-19 treatment in two hospitals will now be used for normal services. Also, 120 of the 170 beds for COVID-19 treatment at Braham Prakash Ayurved Charak Sansthan will be now used for normal services, as per an official order.