Doctors warned that people who are experiencing coronavirus-like symptoms should get themselves tested. On April 2, the Delhi government had banned the imposition of a fine for not wearing a mask.
Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) A meeting is expected to be held on April 20 on the sudden rise in cases in the national capital Delhi. The Covid-19 positivity rate in the national capital has increased from 0.5% to 5.33% in two weeks.
On Saturday, Delhi registered 461 cases with positivity rate 5.33%, while two deaths also occurred. On Friday, 366 cases were registered in Delhi.
The last time Delhi recorded a positivity rate of 5.09% was on February 1, while the figure was 6.2% on January 31.
Doctors at major government and private hospitals stressed that there was a need to increase testing in the wake of the spike in cases, even as they said there was no need for “any drastic restrictions” as of now.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday said that his government is keeping a close watch on the COVID-19 situation in the capital and there is no major reason to panic at the moment. He also said that all necessary steps will be taken.
“People who are developing symptoms are not going covid-19 test, Roughly speaking. Now, with the rise in cases and more than five per cent positivity rate, I would urge people to go for tests if they have symptoms.
“Even those going for home isolation should go for tests,” said a senior doctor at LNJP Hospital.
Dr Ritu Saxena, head of the emergency department at Delhi government’s biggest facility and a premier Covid-19 hospital here, said that now large gatherings should be avoided and people should wear masks and follow COVID-appropriate behaviour.
As the DDMA meeting is scheduled to take place on April 20, “we can possibly expect some sort of restrictions in view of the rise in cases and rising positivity rate”, she said.
He said, “We have 250 beds reserved for Covid-19 patients, and depending on the situation, the entire facility may be reserved for them again. At present, five patients are in ICU, but none on ventilator is.”
Dr Suranjit Chatterjee, senior consultant of internal medicine at Apollo Hospitals, said hospitalizations were still low, but batted for ‘logical’ and ‘stringent’ measures to contain the spread of the infection.
“Given the situation in Delhi, the DDMA meeting should have been held a little earlier. Also, there is a need to bring back the mask mandate,” he said.
With the positivity rate climbing, the right move would be to take “logical, stringent measures”, he said.
Chatterjee said, “We lost a Covid-19 patient in the hospital recently, but he was 79 years old and had co-morbidities. The good thing so far is that the number of Covid patients admitted in the hospital is still less and the severity is also less.”
The doctor said the current situation in Delhi does not guarantee major restrictions such as closure of markets and closure of physical offices, as the economy has already suffered heavy losses under three waves of the pandemic.
But, the situation is evolving, “so we have to watch it closely too,” Chatterjee said.
Doctors at several major government and private facilities warned earlier this week that a “sense of complacency among the public” had set in, especially after authorities recently lifted the mask mandate.
The steady rise in the positivity rate has given rise to concerns about a possible new wave of the coronavirus pandemic in the city.
Doctors have also said that vaccination and herd immunity have “definitely provided a level of protection” to people as well.
The nationwide vaccination exercise started in January 2021 and currently, the exercise to give a precautionary dose is underway.