Daily spike of Covid-19 cases at highest of 2021 for second consecutive day

The number of Covid-19 infections continued to spike on Thursday, with the district reporting 741 new infections, marking the second consecutive day when the daily spike this year reached its highest

The number of Covid-19 infections continued to spike on Thursday, with the district reporting 741 new infections, marking the second consecutive day when the daily spike this year reached its highest. The positivity rate in the district is currently at 7.8%, as per the health department data.

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Officials of the district health department said they are working hard to reduce the positivity rate and are planning to start collecting samples and conduct vaccinations at metro stations and three large shopping malls in the coming days, in response to the rapid surge in Covid-19 cases.

The district administration on Thursday held a review meeting at the PWD guest house to discuss the Covid-19 situation, wherein officials decided to start sampling at public places, including metro stations and malls.

Dr Virender Yadav, chief medical officer, said, “Session sites for vaccination will also be set up at the malls. The objective is to widen testing and vaccination. We have also asked authorities to enforce safeguards strictly.”

The total number of cases in the district currently stands at 67,490, while the number of active cases is 4,455, of whom 4,160 are isolated at home.

The health department on Thursday collected more than 8,000 samples for testing that included both RT-PCR and antigen tests. Officials said that they are expecting the cases to rise and, as such, are ready to meet the situation. “The city residents will have to follow the safeguards religiously, as the health department can only test, isolate and vaccinate. The onus to prevent the spread is on citizens, by following safety protocols,” said Yadav.

As per the vaccination data shared by the department, over 16,000 persons got vaccinated at 154 session sites on Thursday, with around 300,000 people being vaccinated in the district so far.

Health officials said that a positive development on the vaccination front is that number of jabs in private hospitals is also rising. “More than 40% of people eligible for vaccination have been covered and in coming days, numbers will increase,” said Yadav.

The department also issued directions to private testing labs and hospitals to properly collect the credentials and mobile phone numbers from people being tested to ensure effective contact tracing.