Lockdown in Delhi extended till May 31
Delhi chief minister Kejriwal says phased relaxation will begin from May 31 if the Covid-19 cases and positivity rate continue to decline
Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday extended the ongoing lockdown in the Capital by another week but said that a phased relaxation will begin from May 31 if the Covid-19 case trajectory and positivity rate continue to decline.
He also expressed concerns over vaccine shortage in the light of a potential third wave of Covid-19 in the country, while stressing on the need to prepare against it.
“In the last 24 hours, we asked several sections of people what to do and the larger opinion is that the lockdown should be extended by another week. If we open everything now, there is a risk that we may lose all gains on the Covid-19 front we have made over the last one month. The lockdown was supposed to last till 5 am tomorrow. Now, we have decided to extend it till 5 am next Monday (May 31),” said Kejriwal in online news briefing.
“However, if the curve continues to decline like this for a week, we will start a phased un-lockdown process from May 31. We cannot open everything at one go. There is an immense risk in it. So, the relaxations have to be implemented in a phased way. I hope people will cooperate in this,” he said.
Delhi has witnessed four distinct waves of Covid-19. The last one which started in late-march – coinciding with the second wave in the country – has been the most severe which overwhelmed the city’s healthcare system, with a shortage of medical oxygen and essential medicines claiming several lives.
At its peak, Delhi recorded 28,395 cases on April 20 and a positivity rate of more than 36% on April 22.
In his Sunday briefing, the chief minister said that the number of new cases recorded in the last 24 hours has dropped to around 1,600 and the positivity rate was less than 2.5%. The city has now recorded a positivity rate of less than 5% -- World Health Organisation’s (WHO) benchmark for Covid-19 cases being under control– for three consecutive days.
On April 17-18, a weekend curfew was imposed in Delhi, which was turned into a full lockdown from April 20. This is the fifth time the ongoing lockdown has been extended.
Dr Puneet Misra, professor of community medicine at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Delhi, said: “The city cannot remain under a complete lockdown forever. That is understandable. Before relaxing the lockdown, Delhi should ideally have a positivity rate of less than 5% for at least one week. NEW DELHI: