Delhi logs 416 Covid cases in one day, highest in 7 months
1 min read 01 Apr 2023, 10:07 PM ISTDelhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Friday said that the national capital was prepared and added that wearing of face masks has not been made mandatory as yet.
PremiumNational capital Delhi on Saturday logged 416 fresh Covid cases, highest in over seven months, according to the health department's bulletin. The Covid positivity rate in the city also stood at 14.37.
Delhi's Covid-19 cases climbed to 300 on Wednesday for the first time since August 31 last year, while the positivity rate climbed to 13.89 per cent, according to data shared by the city health department.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Friday said that the national capital was prepared and added that wearing of face masks has not been made mandatory as yet.
Addressing media here, Kejriwal said that the Delhi government is monitoring the Covid-19 situation and is prepared to face any eventuality. He noted that Delhi has seen an increase in Covid -19 cases in the last 15 days but there is no need to worry now.
Kejriwal said that 42 cases of Covid-19 were found on March 15 that went up to 295 cases on March 30. There are 932 active cases in the national capital, he said.
Delhi recorded 115 fresh coronavirus cases with a positivity rate of 7.45 per cent on Monday.
Amid a gradual increase in the number of Covid cases in Delhi, medical experts say the new XBB.1.16 variant of the virus could be driving the surge.
However, they maintain that there is no need to panic and people should follow Covid-appropriate behaviour and get booster shots of the vaccines.
They also say this rise in the number of cases could be a result of more people getting themselves tested for Covid as a precaution when they actually get infected with the influenza virus and develop fever and related symptoms.
Delhi Health Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj had said there were not many influenza cases in the city hospitals and the situation was being monitored closely.
The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has said the rise in the number of influenza cases is due to the Influenza A sub-type H3N2 virus.
The H3N2 virus is leading to more hospitalisations than the other sub-types. The symptoms include a runny nose, persistent cough and fever.
(With inputs from agencies)
