At 0.51%, Covid-19 positivity rate in Delhi at all-time low

NEW DELHI: The national capital on Sunday recorded a Covid-19 test positivity rate of 0.51%, the lowest since the Delhi government started releasing testing data in April last year.

The Capital added 399 new infections according to Sunday’s health bulletin, which reflects data primarily from the previous day. These infections came on the back of 77,600 tests, a majority of which used the more reliable reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) method.

Experts regard test positivity rate as a vital metric to judge the spread of an infection. The World Health Organization recommends a number below 5% for two weeks for an infection to be considered under control.

The positivity rate in the Capital has been below 5% for 39 days now, since the third wave of the infection subsided in the Capital. Further, the city has also added less than 1,000 cases of the infection, which has claimed 10,678 lives so far, for 17 consecutive days.

The seven-day case average as on Sunday was the lowest in the city since mid-may. In the seven days ending December 10, Delhi added an average of 475 cases of the infection, compared to a peak of 7,341 cases a day in the week ending November 14, when the city was in the throes of the third wave of infections.

While experts said the precise causes for this sharp drop were unclear, some said it may have to do with immunity built up over time.

Dr Lalit Kant, former head of the department of epidemiology and infectious diseases at the Indian Council of Medical Research, said, “Immunity to this infection lasts at least for five or six months, which may be one of the reasons for the drop.”

According to the health bulletin on Sunday, Delhi added 12 more fatalities of the infection. Over the past seven days, Delhi recorded an average of 13 deaths due to Covid-19, a sharp fall from the average of 116 daily deaths in the third week of November.

Kant, however, warned residents of the city against letting their guard down. “One thing is clear — whenever there has been a peak, it has been followed by a trough. So, since the vaccine is on the anvil, we should take advantage of this decline in cases by immunising as many people as possible.”

State health minister Satyendar Jain said, “The Covid-19 situation in Delhi has improved a lot and is now under control”.

Since the vaccine is on the anvil, we should take advantage of this decline in cases by immunising as many people as possible.

DR LALIT KANT, former head, dept of epidemiology, ICMR