NEW DELHI: Delhi on Thursday reported 4,291 fresh COVID-19 cases and 34 deaths while the positivity rate dropped marginally to 9.56 per cent, according to data shared by the city health department.
With this, the national capital's cumulative case count increased to 18,15,288 and the death toll reached 25,744.
Delhi had on Wednesday reported 7,498 cases with a positivity rate of 10.59 per cent and 29 deaths.
According to official data, the positivity rate was 11.88 per cent on January 5 and 8.37 per cent on January 4.
As many as 44,903 tests to detect COVID-19 were conducted on Wednesday.
The number of daily cases in Delhi has been on the decline after touching the record high of 28,867 on January 13.
The city had logged a positivity rate of 30.6 per cent on January 14, the highest during the ongoing wave of the pandemic.
It took just 10 days for daily cases to drop below the 10,000-mark.
Delhi had on Sunday reported 9,197 Covid cases with a positivity rate of 13.32 per cent and 34 deaths.
There are 15,420 beds for Covid patients in Delhi hospitals and 2,028 (13.15 per cent) of them are occupied.
A total of 2,028 Covid patients are in hospitals, the health department bulletin stated.
Active cases in Delhi on Thursday reduced to 33,175 from 38,315 on Wednesday.
Also, 699 coronavirus patients were on oxygen support, out of whom 142 were on ventilator support.
The number of people under home isolation stood at 26,812 on Thursday while it was 28,733 a day before.
The city has 42,388 containment zones, a drop from 43,662 on Wednesday.
With the positivity rate on a downward trend, the Delhi Disaster Management Authority on Thursday decided to lift weekend curfew and the odd-even system of opening non-essential shops in the city besides allowing restaurants, bars, cinema halls and theatres to reopen with 50 per cent capacity Government offices have been allowed to reopen with 50 per cent of employees in attendance.
Wedding venues have been allowed to have guests 50 per cent of their capacity but not exceeding 200 in attendance.
According to officials, a final call on reopening schools will be taken in the next meeting of the DDMA.
Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had on January 25 said the Delhi government does not want the livelihood of the people to be affected and Covid restrictions will be eased as soon as possible.
On January 25, the city had logged 6,028 cases with a positive rate of 10.55 per cent, and 31 fatalities due to Covid.
Only 36 per cent of the 89 fatalities recorded in Delhi from January 13-15, in which Covid-19 was the primary cause of death, were vaccinated, according to official data.
A little over 21 per cent of the 438 deaths reported in these two weeks were due to Covid-19, while the virus in rest of the cases was incidental, it said.
"The daily deaths are analysed. The analysis between January 13 and January 25 showed that out of the total of 438 deaths recorded during the period, 94 were those where the virus was the primary cause of death.
"In 318 fatalities, the finding of the virus was incidental with the patients being those who had comorbidities and were ailing for a long time with kidney ailments, cancer, and lung diseases among others," the data stated.
"They were mostly end-stage patients and a majority of them were aged 60 and above," it said.
"When we admit a patient in the hospital, they are tested for Covid-19 to see whether protocols are being followed," an official said.
Of the 94 fatalities where coronavirus was the primary reason, five were those who were not eligible for vaccination while 57 were unvaccinated and only 32 were partially or fully vaccinated.
"Of the deceased, 64 per cent of patients were those who were eligible for inoculation but were not vaccinated, he said.
According to the official, sufficient data was not available yet to ascertain whether these patients were infected with Omicron or not.
"We have not received the entire genome sequencing data. Of course, Omicron would be there but we do not know the numbers," he mentioned.
So far in January, 637 Covid-19 fatalities have been reported.
"The deaths where Covid-19 is reported in the patient are treated as coronavirus deaths. It is an established principle. We have a panel of experts and the analysis was done to see whether there was a pattern to the pneumonia which was typical of Covid-19 but it was found that the fatalities were among those who were end-stage patients," the official said.
Health Minister Satyendar Jain has been stressing that a majority of the patients that succumbed during due to infection this time had comorbidities.
The Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) on Thursday ordered lifting of weekend curfew and the odd-even system of opening non-essential shops in the city, besides allowing restaurants, bars, cinema halls and multiplexes to reopen with 50 per cent capacity, given the improving Covid situation.
These decisions were made at a DDMA meeting headed by Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal.
A final call to reopen schools will be taken in the next meeting, officials said.
Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, his ministers, top officers, and health experts also participated in the meeting.
According to a DDMA order, government offices will be allowed to reopen with presence of 100 per cent Grade 1 Level officers and 50 per cent other staff in attendance.
Wedding venues have been allowed to have guests 50 per cent of their capacity but not exceeding 200 in attendance.
Till now, only 20 people were allowed to attend wedding ceremonies at home.
Funeral gatherings can now have 100 people in attendance, said the order.
Earlier the number was limited to 20 people.
The DDMA in its order reversed most of the restrictions that were imposed earlier this month due to rise in number of cases.
However, restrictions on opening gyms and spas will continue.
The order clarified that night curfew from 10 pm to 5 am imposed on weekdays will continue.
The restaurants will now open between 8 am to 10 pm, while bars will be permitted to operate from 12 noon to 10 pm.
The non-essential shops in markets and malls will be allowed to open from 10 am to 8 pm.
The DDMA meeting also decided to strictly enforce and enhance Covid-appropriate behaviour and other guidelines to check the rise in cases, officials added.
Following the meeting, Baijal tweeted that after detailed discussions with experts, keeping in view the decline in cases, it was decided to gradually ease restrictions while ensuring adherence to Covid-appropriate behaviour.
"It was agreed to revoke weekend curfew and to open markets without the odd-even rule. It was also decided to open all government offices with 100 per cent strength up to Grade 1 level."
"Restaurants, bars and cinema halls/theatres to operate up to 50 per cent capacity," he said in a tweet.
The LG also advised the Health Department to enhance vaccination coverage with a special focus on vulnerable sections and also to undertake necessary epidemiological analysis of hospitalised patients
Sisodia had on Wednesday met a delegation of parents of children and agreed with their demand for reopening schools.
He had said the schools were closed when it was unsafe for children to go there but "excessive caution" was harming them now.
The Delhi government had last Friday proposed lifting the weekend curfew and ending the odd-even scheme for opening shops but the LG suggested maintaining the status quo on the restrictions till the situation improved further.