Delhi records 99 COVID deaths, 5246 cases; infection tally at 5.45 lakh
NEW DELHI: Delhi recorded 5,246 fresh COVID-19 cases in a day as the positivity rate declined to 8.49 percent, the lowest since October 28, while 99 more fatalities pushed the city's death toll to 8,720 on Wednesday, authorities said.
It was after five days that the national capital recorded single-day death below 100.
As many as 61,778 tests, including 26,080 RT-PCR ones -- the highest till date for the city -- and 35,698 rapid antigen tests, were conducted the previous day for the detection of COVID-19, according to a bulletin by the Delhi health department on Wednesday.
The city had recorded its highest single-day spike of 8,593 cases on November 11. Authorities reported 98 deaths on November 19, 118 on November 20, 111 on November 21, 121 each on November 22 and 23, and 109 on November 24.
As many as 131 COVID-related deaths had been recorded on November 18, the highest till date, and 104 fatalities on November 12.
According to the bulletin, the total number of coronavirus cases climbed to 5,45,787 on Wednesday, of which 4,98,780 have recovered. The tally of active cases in Delhi was 38,287 down from 38,501 on Tuesday.
On Thursday, Delhi had recorded 7,546 cases, followed by 6,608 on Friday, 5879 on Saturday, 6,746 on Sunday, 4,454 on Monday, and 6,224 on Tuesday.
This is the first time the national capital recorded an 8.49 percent positivity rate since October 28 when a 9.37 percent positivity rate had been recorded.
The number of COVID-19 containment zones in Delhi rose to 4,980 on Wednesday from 4,708 the previous day.
Of the total number of 18,196 beds in COVID-19 hospitals, 8,928 are vacant, according to official data.
Amid a spurt in the infections tally in the city, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal Wednesday requested experts to audit COVID-19 death cases and suggest measures to reduce fatalities in the national capital.
The chief minister made the request at a meeting of the Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA), which is chaired by Lt Governor Anil Baijal.
This comes against the backdrop of Delhi's three BJP-led municipal corporations alleging inconsistencies in the official death count vis-a-vis the number of deaths projected by funerals at the crematoria and burial grounds here.
Meanwhile, the Delhi Health Minister Satyender Jain on Wednesday claimed the national capital reported the "least fatality per million" population amongst all four metro cities in the country."
The AAP government had last week increased the fine for not wearing masks from Rs 500 to Rs 2,000 and directed private hospitals to reserve 80 percent ICU beds for coronavirus patients.
The National Centre for Disease Control in a report drafted recently had warned that Delhi needs to be prepared for about 15,000 fresh cases of COVID-19 per day taking into account the upcoming winter season-related respiratory problems, a large influx of patients from outside and festive gatherings.
The number of tests done per million as of Friday was over 3 lakh while the total number of tests stood at over 58 lakh.