Covid-19: Positivity rate in Delhi falls below 1%

This is also the first time Delhi has added less than 1,000 cases for three straight days, since the city started seeing over 1,000 cases a day for the first time on May 28.

The national capital on Wednesday recorded a Covid-19 test positivity rate lower than 1% — the first time it achieved the milestone since the state government has started releasing regular data on the number of cases and tests, even as it added fewer than 1,000 new infections for the third straight day.

A health worker in PPE coveralls collects a swab sample from a person for coronavirus screening at a temporary testing facility in Sarai Kale Khan, New Delhi. (Biplov Bhuyan/HT PHOTO)

Delhi reported 871 cases of the coronavirus disease on Wednesday, with over 87,000 tests conducted — a positivity rate of 0.99%. This is also the first time Delhi has added less than 1,000 cases for three straight days, since the city started seeing over 1,000 cases a day for the first time on May 28.

At that time, the city was testing between 5,000 and 7,000 samples a day.

Experts regard the positivity rate as a crucial metric to gauge the spread of an infection, and the World Health Organization recommends that a region with a comprehensive testing programme should maintain a positivity rate below 5% for two weeks, for an outbreak to be considered under control.

“Yesterday [Tuesday], the positivity rate dropped to 1.14%, which is the lowest in eight months. And, today [Wednesday] we have seen that it has dropped to below 1%, which is probably the lowest in the country,” said Delhi health minister Satyendar Jain during a press briefing on Wednesday.

Don’t need to vaccinate kids before sending them to school: Jain

Health minister Jain on Wednesday also said it is not necessary to vaccinate children before sending them to schools.

“It is not necessary to vaccinate the children before sending them to schools. The aim is to prevent the circulation of the virus in the community and to protect the vulnerable. In the first phase, the vaccine will be given to healthcare workers, front line workers, and those above the age of 50, or those who have comorbidities. The government is working on collecting the data of these persons,” he said.

About 300 million people across the three priority groups were recommended to receive the vaccine first by the National Expert Group on Vaccine Administration for Covid-19 (NEGVAC).

The Delhi government had insisted on keeping the schools and colleges in the state shut till a vaccine became available. This is mainly to prevent the children from carrying the virus back home and infecting the vulnerable members of the family, experts say.

As for the new UK variant of the virus, the minister advised that people maintain mask discipline to prevent the spread of the infection.

“Scientists say that the new UK variant spreads faster. However, the coronavirus is known to mutate over time and whether it is a UK variant, or the one from China, or the one from US, wearing a mask can prevent any of the strains from infecting a person. So, I urge people to continue to wear a mask. It was with the help of the people from Delhi that we have been able to control the spread of the infection,” Jain said.