Stricter Covid-19 curbs back in India as Omicron cases multiply

Weekend curfew in Delhi; Mumbai warns of lockdown if daily cases cross 20,000

India is bracing itself for a surge in Omicron cases amid an increase in the test positivity rate, more than 37,000 cases on Tuesday (the highest in 118 days), and an uptick in hospitalisation.

The number of Omicron cases in the country detected till Tuesday morning reached 1,892.

Experts have warned in a country with a huge population such as India, a small proportion of severe Omicron cases could put the health infrastructure to the test.

More restrictions such as weekend curfews, halved capacity in private offices, and work from home in government offices were imposed in Delhi while the Mumbai authorities warned of lockdown measures if the number of daily cases crossed 20,000.

There was an almost 11 per cent increase in cases in the country on Tuesday against Monday, with the weekly positivity rate increasing to 2.05 per cent. There was a rise of 18 per cent in active cases, which reached 171,830 on Tuesday.

India administered 8.7 million doses of Covid vaccines on Tuesday.

“Delhi will undergo weekend lockdown from January 8 till further orders in view of the rising Covid cases. Leave home only in the case of an emergency or in need of essential services,” said Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia.

As the daily cases in Delhi increased 33 per cent to 5,400, including Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who tested positive on Tuesday, the number of patients on the ventilator doubled to 14 in a day. Patients on oxygen support also increased from 124 to 168 in a day.  

Mumbai recorded 10,860 fresh cases on Tuesday, up from Monday’s 8,082 cases.   

Amid reports of infections among more than 50 staff members at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in New Delhi and some other hospitals, there was a pickup in the pace of teen vaccination on day two. More than 8 million people in the 15-17 age group got their first jab till Tuesday evening, according to the provisional data.

Of these 4 million received their first dose on day one.

Doctors, however, are beginning to feel the pinch of the third wave.

AIIMS, New Delhi, for instance, cancelled the winter vacation from January 5 to 10, asking all the faculty members to join work immediately. 

In view of the situation, the Delhi Disaster Management Authority has decided all government offices will be closed and people will work from home except in essential services like hospitals. Metro and buses will run with full capacity in Delhi to prevent crowding.

While Delhi for the second consecutive day has seen a high positivity rate, crossing 8 per cent on Tuesday, and has been in the red alert category, the state government has ruled out a complete lockdown.

Hospitalisation in Mumbai increased as cases kept climbing. A total of 834 patients were hospitalised on Tuesday, and the hospital bed occupancy rate increased to 14.7 per cent, up from 12.2 per cent the day before. Around 89 per cent of Mumbai’s fresh cases are asymptomatic, said the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation. Of the 834 cases of hospitalisation, around 50 needed oxygen support. What is worrisome is that the city’s case doubling rate has reduced to 110 days now from 138 days on Monday.

Mumbai is taking no chances. Its tertiary care hospitals with dedicated beds for Covid are seeing an increase in occupancy after several days.

The P D Hinduja Hospital, for instance, now has 50 Covid patients in its Covid ward -- over 60 per cent of the ward capacity. This is up from 10-11 patients about 10 days back.  

Joy Chakraborty, chief operating officer of the P D Hinduja Hospital, said “oxygen requirements are small in comparison to what it was before and the government has indicated that admission is to be given only to patients with symptoms.”

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation has issued fresh guidelines on sealing buildings if more than 20 per cent of the occupied flats in a building or wing have Covid patients. The BMC schools have been shut till January 31.

Most of Mumbai’s beds are in the public sector, and they are getting filled. The Richardson and Cruddas Jumbo Hospital in Mulund, in the eastern suburbs of the city, has seen its patient count swell by three times in one week.

Patients in the Mulund Jumbo Facility have tripled within a week from around 100 cases a week ago to 332 patients on Tuesday.

In order to avoid a repeat of the second wave, the Delhi government is installing telemetry devices in the oxygen tanks of 53 big government and private hospitals.

“Live monitoring of oxygen levels will be done through the Covid war room,” a press statement said. 

Tamil Nadu too is considering a two-day curfew, closing places of worship during weekends and time restrictions at shopping places, with cases rising by 11 per cent in a day on January 3.

Kerala, which has reported 181 Omicron cases so far, came up with regulations on Tuesday, limiting the number of people who could attend public functions, including marriage functions and funerals, to 75. At one time, only 150 people will be allowed in any public place.

West Bengal recorded 9,073 cases on January 4, significantly up from 6,078 cases the day before. The positivity rate, however, is at 18.96 per cent against 19.59 per cent on January 3.

The West Bengal government too wrote to the civil aviation ministry, saying that despite the “inconvenience” caused to travellers due to restrictions on flight arrivals, the state would continue with the restrictions as they are “absolutely essential”. Incoming domestic flights from Delhi and Mumbai will be allowed only on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday of every week with effect from January 5.

Inputs from Shine Jacob & Ishita Ayan Dutt