Delhi COVID-19 Count Crosses 15,000, With Record 792 New Cases In 24 Hours

Delhi has crossed the 15,000-mark in coronavirus cases, with 792 new infections reported over the past 24 hours, authorities said on Wednesday. The new cases also represent the largest single-day spike and the first time that over 700 cases have been reported from the national capital in a 24-hour period.

The total number of cases in Delhi is now 15,257.

Although no new deaths have been reported, the number of fatalities linked to the virus has increased from 288 to 303 after a report by the Death Audit Committee. According to government data, the mortality rate in Delhi is currently 1.98 per cent, while the national mortality rate is in excess of 2.5 per cent.

The government said 310 people were discharged over the past 24 hours, taking the number of people who have recovered from the illness to 7,264, for a recovery rate of 47.61 per cent.

There are around 90 containment zones in Delhi, all of which has been declared a "red zone". The number of zones had dipped to 76 less than 10 days ago. On Tuesday, parts of Narela in the northwest of Delhi and parts of Kotla Mubarakpur in the southeast of the city added to the list.

Delhi, alongside Maharashtra, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu and Rajasthan, remains among the states most badly affected by the coronavirus pandemic. The national capital took just 10 days to cross the 15,000-case mark after reaching the 9,000-mark on May 16.

On Tuesday Delhi Transport Minister Kailash Gehlot ruled out reports the Delhi Metro may re-start after the fourth phase of the lockdown ends on May 31. The metro, and all public transport, was shut in March after the lockdown was ordered.

Resumption of metro services was high on the list of suggestions from Delhi residents polled by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal earlier this month.

The DMRC is prepping for a re-start, with pictures shared on social media showing what travel in the metro could look like, but no official date has been announced.

In Delhi, under Lockdown 4 guidelines, taxis and cabs have been allowed with two people, apart from the driver, and buses can ply with no more than 20 passengers at a time.

Also on Tuesday, Delhi Lieutenant-Governor Anil Baijal asked the health department to work on improving medical infrastructure and ensuring beds and oxygen facilities were available at hospitals.

During a meeting with Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, it was also decided the public would be given real-time information about availability of COVID-19 beds in hospitals.

The spike in fresh COVID-19 cases in Delhi - 635 were reported on Monday and 412 on Tuesday - comes amid a similarly worrying spike in national figures. Health Ministry data this morning showed that India had crossed 1.5 lakh coronavirus cases with 6,387 new cases over the past 24 hours.

With input from PTI