Arvind Kejriwal, the Chief Minister of Delhi, issued a grim alert on Saturday, saying the city was quickly running out of beds, oxygen, and the life-saving drug Remdesivir as it registered an estimated 24,000 new coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours.
The positivity rate had hit a staggering 24%, he added, implying that one of every four people surveyed had tested positive.
“The situation is very serious and concerning,” Mr. Kejriwal said. “Cases have risen at an alarming rate. That is why we are seeing shortages despite the fact that everything seemed to be under control only a few days earlier. But, with the rate at which this corona is expanding, no one knows when it will reach its apex “He continued.
“Every health-care infrastructure has its limits. The government is making every effort to raise the number of available beds. I’m hoping that in the next two to four days, we’ll be able to add 6,000 more beds “He said.
On Saturday, Delhi led major cities across India into a weekend lockdown as the country faced a ferocious new coronavirus wave, with more than 2.3 lakh new cases recorded daily, leaving several states desperate for drugs and hospital beds.
Hopes that the world has beaten the pandemic have been shattered, with over 20 lakh new cases reported in India this month alone.
The per-capita rates remain low by international standards, but the pace at which cases are increasing has prompted the international Red Cross to describe the increase as “truly terrifying.”
India now has three times the number of cases every day as the United States, the world’s worst-affected region.
Hospitals around the world are running out of oxygen and commonly available drugs like Remdesivir and Fabiflu, forcing poor patients to pay exorbitant black market prices.
The city of over 2 crore people currently has the highest number of regular cases in India, and all restaurants, malls, and gyms have been closed. Weddings can be held with a guest list of up to 50 people, but funerals can only have 20.
