Lockdown in Delhi? CM Arvind Kejriwal to take call as COVID-19 cases surge

In view of rising COVID-19 cases in the national capital, the Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP is mulling to impose a weekend lockdown in order to prevent the infection from spreading further.

New Delhi: In view of rising COVID-19 cases in the national capital, the Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP government is mulling to impose a weekend lockdown in order to prevent the infection from spreading further.

Sources also said that the AAP government is also exploring options for imposing 2-3 weeks of strict lockdown to deter people from going outside and thus breaking the chain of deadly COVID-19 infection.

It has also been reported that CM Arvind Kejriwal may announce a weekend curfew in Delhi.

Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal is holding a crucial meet with Lt Governor Anil Baijal regarding the coronavirus situation in the UT and is expected to announce what decision has been taken to curb the COVID-19 surge in the national capital.

The meeting is being attended by the Delhi Health Minister, Chief Secretary and senior officials. The development comes as the national capital on Wednesday recorded the biggest single-day jump in its COVID-19 tally with 17,282 new cases, while over 100 people died.

Additionally, the national capital reported over 104 deaths, whereas the country reported 1,033 deaths due to COVID-19 infections on Wednesday, which was the highest since October 2020. In Delhi, the number of cremations at its biggest crematorium, Nigambodh Ghat have gone up by at least 30 percent. 

Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain had earlier said that COVID-19 cases are rising very rapidly in the national capital but “there is no slowdown”. The minister, however, had also reiterated that lockdown was not a solution to the situation, and advised people to step out only if urgent, avoid gatherings, wear masks and follow COVID-19-appropriate behaviour.

A massive spike of 2 lakh new COVID-19 cases took India's total coronavirus count to 1.40 crore, as per the Union Health Ministry on Thursday (April 15, 2021). India reported 2,00,739 new COVID-19 cases alongside 93,528 recoveries and 1,038 deaths in the last 24 hours. The unprecedented surge in infections has taken the country's active count to 14,71,877.

Ten states namely Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Rajasthan have shown a rise in the COVID-19 daily new cases. 82.04% of the new cases are reported from these 10 states only.