Delhi registered 10,732 new coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said on Sunday morning, adding that the fourth wave of the pandemic in the Capital is “extremely dangerous”.
The Delhi chief minister again urged the Centre to allow all adults to get vaccinated. “The Delhi government is ready to go to each house to inoculate people,” Kejriwal said during a press briefing. “During the meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, other chief ministers also said they would vaccinate all the citizens in their states in three months if the Centre removes age restrictions.”
He said that the speed of vaccination has to be greater than the pace at which the coronavirus is spreading.
Kejriwal added that he was not in favour of a lockdown. “The imposition of a lockdown is not the solution, though it slows the speed at which the infection spreads.” he said. “A government should impose lockdown only when its hospital arrangements collapse. We are focusing on containing the spread of infection, hospital management and vaccination.”
The Delhi chief minister appealed to asymptomatic people not to go to hospitals, and instead isolate themselves at home. “We won’t need to impose a lockdown in Delhi if there is no shortage of beds,” he said. “Hospital management is essential at this point.”
Also read: Coronavirus: India records over 1.52 lakh cases in a day, ‘tika utsav’ begins amid vaccine shortage
From Sunday, India began a four-day vaccination festival despite complaints of shortages by several states.
On Saturday, the Delhi government introduced new coronavirus-related restrictions such as limiting the number of people at bars and restaurants and banning most public gatherings. Restaurants, movie halls and bars in the city will be allowed to operate with 50% of their seating capacity. Metro trains and buses will also run at 50% of their seating capacity.
Delhi had on Saturday registered 7,897 new coronavirus cases, taking the total count since March 2020 to 7,14,423. Thirty-nine more deaths pushed the Capital’s toll to 11,235. On Friday, the Delhi government had ordered all schools to close until further orders. Earlier this week, a night curfew was imposed in the Capital from 10 pm to 5 am.
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