Delhi may see graded response if Covid cases surge: Jain

Delhi, Oct 6 The national capital may have the graded response system if Covid cases rise again in the city, said Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain on Wednesday.

Talking to media, Satyendar Jain said that the Delhi government has granted permission for Ramleela and other events amid the ongoing Covid pandemic. However, he said that the government is taking complete care and full precaution that all Covid protocols must be followed during the festive season.

Appealing to people to avoid social gathering during the festive season, Jain said, "We have given permission for Ramleela with videography to ensure that Covid protocol is not violated."

The Health Minister inaugurated 3 oxygen plants with one MT capacity each at Delhi government-run LNJP hospital on Wednesday. He said that all the wards of the hospital will be connected to this plant through a pipeline. There are a total of five plants at LNJP hospital. Dr Suresh Kumar, medical director of Lok Nayak Hospital, said that the oxygen production capacity of LNJP has now increased to 5 MTs. He said that the hospital's consumption per day is 6-7 MT this time, which was around 35 MT during the second Covid wave.

On being asked about the third Covid wave, Satyendar Jain said that only the health experts can predict about this, adding that, if the daily caseload increases in the city, a graded response system will be implemented which has already been prepared. He said, "If five out of 1000 people are detected with Covid, the system will be implemented. Currently only 3 or 4 people out of 10,000 test positive for Covid infection.