Amid rising COVID-19 cases in the National Capital Territory, the Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) on Tuesday, 23 March, announced that random testing of passengers, coming from other states where COVID-19 cases are increasing, would be carried out at all airports, railway stations, inter-state bus terminals etc.
The DDMA on Tuesday also announced that public celebrations for upcoming festivals such as Holi, Navratri and gatherings in general would not be permitted.
The order from the body also stated that all District Magistrates and concerned authorities should ensure strict adherence to the order, reported ANI.
Delhi reported 1,101 COVID-19 cases on Tuesday, the highest in over three months, while four people succumbed to the virus, the health department said in a bulletin.
Tuesday’s order comes a day after the State Disaster Management Authority (SDMA) held a meeting with the Lieutenant Governor, Chief Minister, Health Minister, Chief Secretary and other senior officials, to formulate strategies to fight the virus in Delhi.
In the meeting, Delhi Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal reportedly stressed upon the need for more caution and regulation in view of the upcoming festivals. He had also said that that random testing at airport and railway stations needed to be done, particularly of passengers coming from states with high incidences of COVID cases.
It was also decided to continue with the existing strategy of cluster-based surveillance, testing and genome sequencing.
Earlier on Tuesday, the BMC also barred the celebration of Holi in both public and private.
(With inputs from ANI.)
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