Battling the fourth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, Delhi recorded over 17,000 cases on Wednesday to become the worst-affected city in the country, leaving financial capital Mumbai far behind in the daily tally.
Delhi recorded 17,282 fresh cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday, the highest single-day surge since the onset of the pandemic, while over 100 fatalities were reported, according to data shared by the health department. Meanwhile, Mumbai's single day peak so far is 11,163, registered on April 4, according to officials figures.
In order to curb the rising cases, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Thursday announced fresh restrictions, including a weekend curfew from 10 pm on Friday to 5 am on Monday. The weekend curfew will come into effect from April 17 onwards, said Kejriwal.
Moreover, all shopping malls, gymnasiums, spas, auditoriums, assembly halls, entertainment parks and similar places will remain closed till further orders. Besides, cinemas/ theatres/ multiplexes are permitted to open with 30% of their seating capacity on weekdays, read the Delhi government's order. However, they will remain closed during the weekend curfew.
In addition, there will be no in-house dining at restaurants. Only home delivery will be allowed, as per the Delhi government's directive. Also, only one weekly market will be allowed each day per zone.
With regards to the COVID-19 management in the national capital, Kejriwal also said there is no shortage of hospital beds in Delhi and over 5,000 are still available for COVID patients. Efforts to increase the number of beds on a large scale will be made, he said and appealed to people not to "insist" on beds in particular hospitals.
