Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain on Monday said the Covid-19 positivity rate in the national Capital was 0.6 per cent which is lower in comparison to States like Maharashtra, Gujarat, Kerala and Punjab.
The Government reinforced that everyone including those who have taken the vaccine shot should continue to wear a mask and follow proper social distancing. Ahead of the Holi, he appealed to the Delhiites, to celebrate a dry Holi with proper precautions.
About the anticipated water shortage due to cleanliness work of the Munak Canal, he said that if the Punjab Government decides to halt the supply, there will be a 25 per cent shortage in the availability of drinking water in Delhi. While deliberations were being conducted by the Delhi Government team, in case there is a shortage, it’ll be equal for the entire capital.
Delhi Health Minister said there were 407 positive cases in Delhi on Sunday. “The positivity rate was at 0.6 per cent. There was a time when the positivity rate in Delhi had crossed 15 per cent but according to WHO guidelines, the positivity rate should be less than five per cent and Delhi is continuously seeing less than three per cent for the past few months,” he said.
Comparing the data of the Delhi with that of the other States, he said that Maharashtra saw 16,620 cases on Sunday with a positivity rate of 16.46 per cent while Kerala saw 1792 cases and the positivity rate was 3.54 per cent Punjab had 1492 cases and the positivity rate was 4.81. Gujarat recorded 810 cases and the positivity rate was 1.78 per cent. When compared, Gujarat has three times the positivity rate of Delhi, Punjab has six times, Kerala has seven times and Maharashtra has 30 times the positivity rate.
“We are aware and careful and increased the testing capacity to 70,000 per day,” he said.
Responding to queries surrounding the surge in infection given the upcoming festive season, the Minister said, “Coronavirus is a recurring infection. It is not going to completely vanish. People have to be careful. The one thing that we have learnt in the past one year is that if we wear a mask, safety is supreme.
Commenting on the query regarding whether the sudden increase in the number of cases was due to the influx of patients from states with a higher positivity rate, Jain said “Delhi is the capital of India and therefore attracts a lot of people from various states. There are a lot of cases that fall in that category as well. But still, I will maintain that there is no need to worry and that Delhi Government is completely aware and careful. Wear a mask, be safe and keep others safe.”
