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Over 25,000 people have tested Covid positive in the last 24 hours in Delhi and less than 100 intensive care unit (ICU) beds remain available in hospitals, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said on Sunday, delivering more bad news in an unprecedented public health crisis sweeping the entire nation.
Pointing out that the positivity rate had gone up from 24 per cent to 30 per cent in just 24 hours, he said due to the fast pace in increase of Covid-19 infections, hospital beds and oxygen for patients was rapidly depleting in the city. Kejriwal cited that less than 100 ICU beds were available in Delhi now and said he spoke to Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday morning and stressed on the need of beds for the Covid patients. “I spoke to Home Minister Amit Shah today and informed him of our dire need of beds and oxygen. We are constantly in touch with the Centre and getting help from it,” he said.
Kejriwal who had talked to Union Health Minister Harshvardhan on Saturday, requested the Centre to reserve at least 7,000 of 10,000 beds in hospitals run by it in Delhi as Covid beds and ensure immediate supply of oxygen. Currently only 1,800 of 10,000 central government hospital beds are reserved for Covid patients, he said.
The Delhi government in the next 2-3 days will come up with 6,000 beds with oxygen facility at Yamuna Sports Complex, Radha Swami Satsang Beas premises and schools, Kejriwal said. It is also arranging high flow oxygen beds for patients in some hospitals, he said. “In the last 24 hours, approximately 25,500 cases of Covid have come up. Before that, we had around 24,000 cases, and before that, we had 19,500 cases,” he said.
“We have noted that the number of available beds reserved for Covid patients is reducing at a fast rate. In Delhi, we are now left with less than 100 ICU beds,” he said.
