NEW DELHI: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday requested the Centre to withdraw a new system requiring assessment of every COVID-19 patient at a government-run facility, saying the order is "not correct".
The chief minister said that if the administration and police forcibly take patients to COVID care centres for their clinical assessment, it will be like 15-day detention for them.
He also said that the COVID-19 situation in the national capital is "not severe" yet.
"The Delhi government, Centre and other organisations have been working in cooperation with each other. I request the Centre to roll back the order," Kejriwal told reporters during a visit at a banquet hall-turned-COVID care facility.
If a COVID-19 patient has a fever of 103 F, he will also have to stand in long queues at government-run centres under the new system, Kejriwal said, asking whether a system should work like this.
Those who can recover at homes should be allowed to stay at home and those who require hospitalisation should be facilitated for the same, the CM said.
He said he has received several requests to that the new order be reversed as it is not feasible for people to follow in all circumstances.
"For instance, your 80-year-old mother is infected with coronavirus and she is asymptomatic or has mild symptoms, and she needs treatment at home, how will you take her to a quarantine centre or a govt facility? At home, she can be taken care of by her children in a better way" the chief minister said.
He demanded the implementation of previous system under which medical teams of district administration would visit the houses of infected persons to check on them and guide them about the process they were required to follow to recover.
Lt Governor Anil Baijal last week issued an order making it mandatory for every new COVID-19 patient to visit a care centre for clinical assessment to ascertain whether he or she requires hospitalisation or home isolation.
The chief minister also said the government has 13,500 beds, which is sufficient for now.
Out of these beds, 6,200 beds have been occupied, he said.
On Wednesday, Delhi recorded 3,788 fresh coronavirus cases, taking the tally in the city over the 70,000-mark, while the death toll from the disease climbed to 2,365.
On Tuesday, the city had reported the highest single-day spike till now of 3,947 cases.