Covid: Delhi records zero death, 21 new cases; positivity rate 0.04 pc

New Delhi, October 16

Delhi recorded zero death due to Covid-19 and 21 fresh cases on Saturday with a positivity rate of 0.04 per cent, according to data shared by the city health department.

Two fatalities due to Covid-19 have been recorded so far this month in Delhi, on October 2 and 10, according to official data.

Only five Covid-related fatalities were reported last month, one each on September 7, 16 and 17, and two on September 28, according to official figures.

The death toll due to coronavirus in Delhi stands at 25,089.

On Saturday, 21 cases were recorded with a positivity rate of 0.04 per cent, according to the latest health bulletin.

On Friday, 26 cases were recorded with a positivity rate of 0.04 per cent.

On Thursday, 28 cases were recorded with a positivity rate of 0.05 per cent, according to official data. 

The number of cumulative cases stands at 14,39,358. Over 14.13 lakh patients have recovered from the infection.

A total of 48,870 tests — 43,504 RT-PCR and 5,366 rapid antigen—were conducted a day ago, the bulletin said.

The daily case count had dropped to 17 on September 13, with no death being recorded on that day, while the positivity rate was 0.04 per cent, according to official figures.

Despite a fall in daily cases in the last several days, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had earlier cautioned that the chances of the third wave of the Covid-19 pandemic were quite real, while asserting that his government was preparing on a “war-footing” to combat it.

Delhi had been reeling under a brutal second wave of the pandemic, claiming a massive number of lives daily, and the oxygen supply shortage issue at various hospitals had added to the woes.

Since April 19, both daily cases and single-day deaths count had been spiralling up, with over 28,000 cases and 277 deaths recorded on April 20; rising to 306 fatalities on April 22. On May 3, the city registered a record 448 deaths, according to official data.

However, the number of cases have shown a downward trend and the positivity rate too has been shrinking in the last several weeks.

Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain recently had said the medical infrastructure was being ramped up and 37,000 beds dedicated for Covid-19 patients were being set up to tackle the anticipated third wave of the pandemic in the national capital.

The number of active cases decreased to 326 on Saturday from 327 a day before, according to the bulletin.

The number of people under home isolation stood at 96 on Saturday while it was 104 a day before, and the number of containment zones increased to 104 from 99 on Friday, the bulletin said. —PTI