NEW DELHI: Devotees mostly stayed indoors to offer namaz and celebrate Eid-al-Adha in Delhi on Wednesday, as religious and festive gatherings remain prohibited in the city to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal greeted people on the occasion.
"Hearty wishes to all the countrymen on Eid-ul-Adha. May this festival bring happiness and prosperity in your lives," Kejriwal tweeted.
The day lacked usual hustle bustle and festivity as major mosques such as Jama Masjid and Fatehpuri Masjid in old Delhi were closed for the visitors.
Police personnel were also deployed outside the mosques to prevent crowding.
"As congregational prayers are not allowed due to COVID-19 restrictions, just a few staffers and their family members offered namaz on Eid-ul-Adha today.
People themselves are careful and not thronging the mosques to keep safe from the virus," said Syed Ahmed Bukhari, Shahi Imam of Jama Masjid.
A senior police officer said meetings were held with Imams earlier to urge them to encourage people to celebrate Eid at their homes for everyone's safety amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Police presence was enhanced and patrolling was intensified to ensure no overcrowding took place amid festivities, he said.
"Posters were also pasted by the police wishing everyone Eid Mubarak and at the same time urging them to celebrate the festival at home with their families and stay safe," he said.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (New Delhi) Deepak Yadav said the Imams and other members of mosques were briefed about the Delhi Disaster Management Authority(DDMA) guidelines regarding Covid and their cooperation was sought for safe celebrations on the festival.
Meanwhile, Delhi has less than a day's stock of coronavirus vaccines left, with nearly 30,000 doses administered on July 19, according to a bulletin issued on Tuesday.
The national capital, as on Tuesday morning, had a balance stock of 2,63,170 coronavirus vaccines, out of which 1,95,290 doses are of Covishield and 67,880 of Covaxin, data shared by the government showed.
However, only 20 per cent of the Covaxin stock is to be used, since its stock is limited and has irregular delivery cycles, it noted.
Only 25,986 doses were administered on Monday, of which 16,704 were first doses and 9,282 second doses.
As many as 93,83,468 vaccine doses have been administered in the national capital till date, including 22,25,292 are second doses.
Delhi's current vaccination capacity stands at 47,605 doses per day.
The national capital recorded five COVID-19 fatalities and 44 fresh cases at a positivity rate of 0.07 per cent on Tuesday, according to a bulletin issued by the Delhi health department.
The city had recorded 36 coronavirus cases on Monday, its lowest single-day rise in over a year, as the positivity rate stood at 0.06 per cent.
It was on April 15 last year that the national capital had recorded 17 cases.
Thirty-seven more patients have recovered from the infection in the national capital, the bulletin showed.
A total of 14,10,005 people have either recovered, been discharged or have migrated out of the city so far.
The case fatality rate stands at 1.74 per cent, it added.
With the new cases and fatalities, the city's death toll climbs to 25,035, while the cumulative case tally reaches 14,35,609.
A total of 63,019 COVID-19 tests were conducted on Monday, of which 44,368 were RTPCR/CBNAAT/True Nat tests, while the rest were rapid antigen tests, the bulletin said.
The number of active Covid cases stands at 569, a minor increase from the previous day's figures of 567, while that of containment zones is 406, a minor decline from 407, a day ago.
According to the bulletin, 183 patients are in home isolation, same as previous day.
Out of 12,729 beds in hospitals, only 333 are occupied.
The national capital had recorded 59 new COVID-19 cases and four deaths on Saturday, while the positivity rate was 0.08 per cent.
On Friday, Delhi had recorded 66 cases and one fatality, while the positivity rate was 0.09 per cent, while on Thursday the city had logged 72 cases and one death, with a positivity rate of 0.10 per cent.
The infection rate, which had reached 36 per cent in the last week of April, has come down to 0.07 per cent now.
On Wednesday, the city had recorded 77 cases and one death, while on Tuesday, the daily infection tally was 76 with two deaths.
Delhi faced a brutal second wave of the pandemic that claimed a large number of lives daily.
The rapid rise in the number of cases led to a shortage of medical oxygen at various city hospitals.
On April 20, the city had reported a record 28,395 cases.
On April 22, the case positivity rate was 36.2 per cent, the highest so far.
At 448, the highest number of deaths was reported on May 3.
A total of 25,985 beneficiaries were vaccinated on Monday, including 9281, who were inoculated with the second dose, thereby making them fully vaccinated.
A total of 93,67,800 beneficiaries have received at least one dose of the vaccine till now in the national capital, including 22,25,694, who have been fully vaccinated with both the doses.