Arvind Kejriwal warned people not to be complacent about COVID-19.
New Delhi:
Delhi appears to have overcome the third wave of the coronavirus pandemic, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said on Saturday, as the city reported 1,133 new cases, well below the peak of more than 8,000 last month and a positivity rate of less than 1.5 percent.
“It appears that the third wave of COVID-19 in Delhi is now ending. Today around 90,000 daily tests are being conducted in Delhi. This is the highest number of daily tests in the country,” he said in an online briefing.
“There was a time in November when daily cases increased to almost 8,600. But, even then, it was not a panic situation in Delhi, and there were beds available. We all fought together. The new case count today is 1,133 the report official will be released soon, “Kejriwal said.
The highest peak in a single day, 8,593 cases, was reported on November 11 in Delhi. India crossed 1 crore of coronavirus infections on Saturday, much later than expected just a month ago as the pace of infections slows, despite many ditching masks and social distancing.
The prime minister said that the situation in Delhi has improved significantly as the positivity rate had risen to 15.26 percent in early November. It is now down to 1.3 percent, one of the lowest so far in Delhi, and also nationally, he said.
Active cases, which were around 45,000 in November, have now dropped to about 12,000, he added.
“The average daily test count falls in the region of 90,000 in Delhi. Someone had advised us to demonstrate an improvement in the test figures through fraudulent procedures … I issued strict orders, I can say that all of our test figures they are genuine, “he said.
The prime minister said: “I salute the COVID-19 warriors, frontline workers; I thank the center, political parties and religious institutions for their support and cooperation.”
He also said that people cannot afford to be complacent about COVID-19 and advised them to “remain vigilant, respect safety rules such as wearing masks and observing social distancing.”
After reaching a peak of nearly 98,000 daily cases in mid-September, daily infections averaged around 30,000 this month in India, helping the country widen its gap with the United States, the worst-affected country in the world with more than 1 , 6 million cases.
(With inputs from agencies)
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