Lockdown in Delhi to be extended for one week, restrictions to be in force till morning of May 3: Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal

As Delhi’s healthcare system gets overwhelmed with increasing number of Covid-19 cases, positivity and mortality rate, the government has decided to extend the lockdown by another week till May 3.

Extending the lockdown, Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said, “Owing to the rise in Covid-19 cases, last week we had announced a six-day lockdown in the state. Lockdown is the last resort and last measure imposed in any fight against Covid and Delhi’s situation was such that imposing a lockdown had become necessary. However, the rise in cases has not come to a halt and cases continue to climb at an alarming rate. In this context, it is the desire of the people as well that the lockdown should be extended. Therefore, we are extending it for another week, till next Monday (May 3) 5 am.”

Kejriwal cited increasing positivity rate even during the week-long lockdown for extending it till May 3. “During this lockdown we observed the positivity rate touched 36-37%. This is a new statistic for Delhi. Perhaps this has happened somewhere in the world, but we had not observed this before. The positivity rate has reduced a bit in the last 2-3 days, with the rate coming to below 30% today. This is not to say that the disease is ebbing, though that is the hope. It may increase or decrease in the coming days, but our efforts will always be directed towards controlling the spread of the virus.”

Delhi, meanwhile, continues to struggle with managing its oxygen requirement and supplies. Kejriwal said though the capital had been allocated 490 tonnes of oxygen, only 330-335 tonnes reached Delhi on Saturday. He said that the allotted oxygen was not reaching Delhi. “We have a requirement of 700 tonnes of oxygen. But against that we are getting only about half, which is a huge impediment in the recovering of Covid-positive patients,” Kejriwal said.

Delhi has now launched an oxygen portal. “We have launched a portal where those involved in the supply of oxygen, from the manufacturer to the supplier and hospitals, have to give regular updates on their position, every two hours. The manufacturers will give updates on the status of the cylinders being produced, the supplier on where the trucks have reached, and hospitals on where their stock stands. This is to ensure that the Delhi government knows where shortage might be felt and is able to divert resources in that direction before time,” Kejriwal said.