61% of active Covid-19 cases in Delhi’s 5.5k hot spots: Delhi govt data

The government attributed the sharp increase in the share of active Covid-19 cases in red zones to its micro-containment policy, which was intensified in November.

Around 61% of active Covid-19 cases in Delhi as on December 22 were in areas demarcated as containment zones, up significantly from 35% in mid-November, when the national capital was at the peak of its third wave of coronavirus disease cases, according to Delhi government data.

Indian women take a selfie outside Sacred Hearth Cathedral which is closed to general public due to Covid-19 restrictions on the eve of Christmas in New Delhi, India. (AP)

Additionally, the Capital had a far greater number of containment zones on December 22, as against mid-November, even though the city has seemingly passed the third wave of infections, and daily new infections are lower now than during than the former period.

As on December 22, Delhi recorded 12,189 total active cases, of which 7,438 (61%) were in the city’s 5,501 containment zones. In comparison, on November 15, the Capital had 43,774 active cases, of which 15,242 (35%) were inside the 4,430 containment zones demarcated at the time.

The government attributed the sharp increase in the share of active Covid-19 cases in red zones to its micro-containment policy, which was intensified in November.

In fact, till early-December, they also allowed containment zones to be notified with less than three cases identified in close proximity, based on a risk assessment by district surveillance officials. The Capital had 6,501 containment zones on December 11 — the highest count so far, government data showed. It further showed that even though the next 11 days saw a drop in the number of active containment zones (from 6,501 to 5,501), it still remains higher than the number on November 15 (4,430).

As new Covid-19 cases in the national capital have continued to decline for around three weeks now, seven out of 11 districts recorded less than 1,000 active cases as on December 22 – compared to only one such district on November 15.

Delhi added a daily average of 1,186 new cases in the seven days ending December 22, down significantly from the 6,697 daily average infections it added in the seven-day period ending November 15 — a period that coincided with increased crowds owing to festivities, and hazardous levels of air pollution.

State revenue minister Kailash Gahlot said, “Delhi witnessed the third wave of Covid-19 in November, which was the worst so far. During that phase, the government decided to go for an aggressive strategy of creating micro containment zones. The idea was to arrest the spread of the disease at the earliest by bringing in a higher proportion of cases under scaled-up surveillance. Micro containment zones were created wherever district officials assessed transmission risk. The efforts have shown good results and Delhi is in much better shape now.”

Dr Lalit Kant, former head of the epidemiology and communicable diseases department in the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), said, “Containment zones witness scaled up surveillance and concentrated efforts on the fronts of testing, tracing, health checks, etc. So, a higher proportion of active cases in containment zones is a good sign. It shows that the government has done better in identification and demarcation of such red zoned. It also shows that scaled-up efforts have succeeded in reducing Covid-19 cases in Delhi.”