Covid 4th wave: Curfew to return in Delhi as positivity rate increases to 6.42%?

Delhi, on Monday, reported more than 1,000 cases for the fourth continuous day in a row with 1,011 new Covid cases in the last 24 hours. The national capital also witnessed a surge in the daily case positivity rate which was 4.48 percent on Sunday and now rose to 6.42 percent.

Even the active cases in Delhi went past the 4,000 mark and currently stand at 4,168 which is the highest since February 12. 

Amid this increasing fear of the Covid 4th wave, the Delhi government may impose a curfew in the capital again. Rules state that if the positivity rate remains above 5% for 3-5 days then the government can impose a curfew. 

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Health experts believe that the Delhi government should impose a curfew till the time Covid-19 cases in the national capital go down, however, the government believes that till the time there are lesser hospitalisations, a curfew may not be required. 

Health experts have also said that Covid-19 cases in Delhi are likely to fall after a few days. It is also worth noting that the rate of hospitalisations in India has not increased. As for Delhi, only 2-3% of patients are getting hospitalised and the death rate among people is also less. Experts believe that this current wave of Covid-19 can be handled only by being careful, not by imposing further restrictions.  

Meanwhile, the Delhi government had on Friday issued an order directing authorities to impose a fine of Rs 500 on people not wearing masks in public places. The fine will not apply to people travelling together in private four-wheelers, it said.

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The government had lifted the fine for not wearing masks on April 12 because of a decline in daily cases.

The decision to bring back the mask mandate and the fine came at a meeting of the Delhi Disaster Management Authority, which devises Covid-19 management policies for the national capital.

The city health department said that from Thursday, Delhi has started providing free precautionary doses of Covid-19 vaccines to beneficiaries in the 18-59 age group at government vaccination centres.