With Delhi witnessing a rise in Covid-19 cases in the last few weeks, the city government has ordered to immediately procure 1,200 BiPAP machines for new ICU beds. A government official said that Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has asked the concerned department to complete the procurement immediately. The move will allow immediate operationalisation of the new ICU beds.
A total of 1,200 BiPAP machines will be procured immediately from the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), the official told PTI.
November is turning out to be the most precarious month for Delhi in managing the Covid-19 pandemic. The cases in Delhi have surged in their third and the deadliest wave so far, with the positivity rate spiking to 15 per cent.
Earlier on Monday, the national capital reported 121 Covid related deaths, taking the number of deaths in November alone to 1,950. The overall toll in the national capital is 8,512. Monday’s toll was also the second-highest so far in the country’s capital. It was also fourth day in a row when Delhi reported over 100 deaths.
Meanwhile, Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain has attributed the high COVID-19 death rate in the city to the pollution caused by stubble-burning and said he expects a downtrend in the next two-three weeks. “There was heavy pollution due to stubble-burning amid the COVID-19 pandemic and it came as a double attack. Since the pollution due to stubble burning is less now, the downtrend in deaths will be there in a few weeks,” he said on Monday.