Operation SHIELD: How Kejriwal govt is planning to contain coronavirus

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has announced a massive sanitisation drive in the Covid-19 affected and high-risk areas, classified as red and orange zones. The number of coronavirus containment zones in Delhi rose to 43 on Sunday.

According to a bulletin issued by the Delhi's Health department, the number of coronavirus cases rose to 1,154 in the national capital while the death toll reached 24, with five fresh fatalities.

Ten technologically-advanced machines from Japan along with 50 Delhi Jal Board machines will be used for the sanitisation drive under 'Operation SHIELD' from Monday, Kejriwal said while addressing a press briefing.

The operation launched by the Aam Aadmi Party government has been successful in Dilshad Garden in northeast Delhi which was a hotspot until now.

"No new case of Covid-19 has been reported in Dilshad Garden in the last 10 days due to Operation SHIELD," the chief minister said.

Sealing, home quarantine, isolation and tracking, essential supply, local sanitisation and door-to-door checking are the key aspects of 'SHIELD' in any containment area.

Ten more hotspots in the national capital were identified as Covid-19 containment zones or red zones, taking the figure to 43 with southeast Delhi having the most at 12 zones.

"We have declared COVID-19 containment zones as red zones and high-risk zones as orange zones. We have identified more containment zones in the national capital," he said.

The chief minister expressed concern about the increasing number of coronavirus cases in the city and said that steps were being taken to contain the spread of the virus.

According to a Delhi government official, Chief Secretary Vijay Dev has directed officers to strictly monitor the containment zones and follow all laid down procedures.

Close on the heels of southeast district, East Delhi has nine coronavirus containment zones, followed by Shahdara at five and West Delhi at four.

While south, southwest and central Delhi have three containment zones each, New Delhi and North district each have two such zones.

Mansara Apartments in Vasundra Enclave, Street Number 9 in Pandav Nagar and Vardhaman Apartments in Mayur Vihar Phase-1 Extension are among 43 containment zones.

In places like Azadpur Mandi, the largest wholesale fruit and vegetable market in the country, authorities have decided to introduce odd-even rules from Monday to maintain social distancing in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak.

It has also been decided to stagger timings -- 6 am to 11 am for sale of vegetables and 2 pm to 6 pm for sale of fruits -- at the mandi.

The decisions were taken following reports that social distancing rules were not being followed at the mandi, which spreads over 80 acres.

Adil Ahmad Khan, chairman of the Agricultural Produce Marketing Committee (APMC), Azadpur, said there are 22 big sheds under which hundreds of traders sell vegetables and a huge number of people visit the market on a daily basis.

"Under the odd-even rules, we will allow all the 22 sheds to operate according to their numbers. For instance, on an even date, even-numbered sheds such as 0, 2, 4, 6, 8 will be allowed to function.

"This will help us maintain social distancing in the market in view of the COVID-19 outbreak" Khan told PTI.

Odd-even rules may also be implemented at other wholesale markets of the national capital. At the mandis, police have also deployed drones, marked spots in front of stalls for customers to stand and are making repeated announcements to ensure people follow social distancing norms.

With help from the Delhi government and the civil administration, several measures have been taken to make sure that people practice social distancing in Keshopur, Azadpur, Ghazipur and Mehrauli mandis, Delhi Police PRO Mandeep Singh Randhawa said.

With more people undergoing coronavirus test, Chief Secretary Dev has also directed officials to make accommodation arrangements for them till their reports come.

Following his direction, over 740 rooms have been booked at various hotels, government flats and other facilities in the city to lodge these people, they added.

Each facility has been attached to a city hospital, the sources said.

According to the health bulletin, 14,036 people have been tested so far, of which 1,154 have tested positive and 11,748 negative. Reports of 984 cases are awaited.

Meanwhile, amidst the lockdown, Christians celebrated Easter, with many praying at home and attending church services through live streaming, as all religious places remained shut due to the nationwide lockdown to curb the spread of coronavirus.

All churches in the city have been closed to prevent large gatherings. Religious gatherings and processions too have been banned by the government in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak.

Easter marks the resurrection of Jesus Christ after crucifixion. It is one of the holiest festivals of Christianity that also witnesses a lot of social activity besides prayers and elaborate church services. The coronavirus pandemic, however, forced the believers to make the festival a private affair.

"Easter has always been an occasion of celebration, get-togethers and a lot of fun. This Easter was bound to be different," Vivin Vergis, who works as a marketing manager, said.

"Although we could not attend the church mass, we are keeping our fingers crossed and hoping that it won't take too long to attend church again. I and my wife are having some good food and wine to celebrate the day," he said.

Father Savarimuthu, the spokesperson of Catholic Archdiocese of Delhi, said the church service and mass were a private affair this time due to the complete lockdown.