Satyendar Jain, the health minister of Delhi said on Wednesday, 12 January, that COVID cases in the national capital have stabilised and that the number of daily infections would decline soon.
He added that the positivity rate, which at the moment is around 24-25 percent, is not a determinant of whether the peak has been reached or not, and referred instead to hospitalisation rates.
"Hospitalisation rate has stabilised and cases have plateaued. There are still several beds vacant," he was quoted as saying.
After admitting that the city would likely see around 25,000 cases on 12 January, he also provided an assurance that should cases come down in the next two or three days, then COVID-related restrictions in the city shall also be lifted.
Chief Minister of Delhi Arvind Kejriwal had said on Tuesday, 11 January, that his government was not going to be imposing a lockdown on the city, despite the massive surge in COVID cases (including the Omicron variant) in the city.
"About 22,000 COVID-19 cases with a positivity rate of 24-25% in the last few days. Don't worry, we will not impose lockdown. At the DDMA meet we requested Central govt officials to cover the entire NCR for restrictions, they assured us on the same," the chief minister was quoted as saying by ANI.
The national capital of India recorded 21,259 cases on Tuesday, while 1,700 police officers in the city tested positive between 1-12 January.
India on Wednesday reported 1,94,720 new cases, 60,405 recoveries, and 442 deaths.
(With inputs from NDTV and ANI)
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