10.4% TEST +VE AS DOWNTURN CONTINUES IN CAPITAL

NEW DELHI: The Covid-19 test positivity rate continued to wind downwards in the national capital, falling to 10.40% on Sunday, from 11.32% a day earlier, with chief minister Arvind Kejriwal signalling that the infection may be steadying in the city, even as he extended the ongoing lockdown by a week.

Delhi recorded 6,456 new infections, Sunday’s health bulletin showed, on the back of 62,059 tests. The city has added an average of 10,043 new cases a day over the past seven days — the lowest in 33 days, since it added 9,299 cases in the seven days ending April 13.

Sunday’s bulletin showed that 262 more people died of the infection in 24 hours. While this number is the lowest in 25 days, it must be noted that this number is still double the death count during the third wave of cases, when Delhi saw a then one-day high of 131 deaths on November 18.

All major parameters concerning the pandemic have seen a downward trend over the past week, indicating that the fourth wave may be receding.

The seven-day average test positivity rate for instance, has dropped from 25.27 as on May 9, to 14.61% on Sunday. Active cases too, have fallen from 86,232 a week ago to 62,783 on Sunday.

The test positivity rate in Delhi is still far higher than the 5% threshold recommended by health experts, including the World Health Organization, for an infection to be considered under control in a region.

At its peak, Delhi recorded 28,395 cases in a day on April 20. And on April 22, the Capital recorded a positivity rate of more than 36%. Single-day deaths hit a high on May 3, when 448 people succumbed to the infection.