Capital logs 1,024 fresh cases, count crosses 16k

nNEWDELHI:THE number of new coronavirus disease (Covid-19) infections in Delhi crossed the 1,000 mark for the first time, government data showed on Thursday, suggesting the national capital has breached a key threshold that officials identified back in March as the trigger for health care preparations to be bolstered further.

The Delhi government’s health bulletin showed the Capital has now recorded a total of 16,281 infections – up 1,024 from Wednesday – with 316 fatalities in all.

Thursday’s figures were released later than usual as authorities rechecked the data since the jump was significantly higher than recent trends, according to officials who asked not to be named.

The number for new cases has shown wide fluctuations in the last five days: it was 412 on Tuesday, down from 635 the day

before. On Wednesday, the number was 792. Of the 16,281 infections, 7,495 have recovered.

In late March, a five-member panel of doctors headed by SK Sarin, the director of the Institute of Liver and Biliary Sciences, drew up a mitigation strategy to activate new hospitals and add or divert hundreds of hospital beds to treat Covid-19 patients in case

TRACKING THE VIRUS

59,546 of a surge in infections.

The strategy identified three thresholds based on new singleday cases — 100, 500 and 1,000 — which would determine how many beds are added or carved out from the existing capacity.

“The government is now looking at revising the admission criteria to lessen the burden on hos

DEATHS