Concerned with the current spike in COVID-19 cases in the capital, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday, 11 April, said that he has requested the Centre to remove age restrictions on vaccination.
The Delhi chief minister said the Centre should open vaccination for all ages. "People below the age of 45 should also be vaccinated to break the cycle of the coronavirus," he said.
While noting that a full lockdown is not the solution to tackle the pandemic, Kejriwal said that the current surge in COVID-19 cases is worse than what Delhi saw during the third peak.
"I have requested the Centre many times regarding the removal of age restrictions on taking COVID-19 vaccine. The Delhi government is ready to conduct a door-to-door campaign to vaccinate people. 65 percent of patients in Delhi are below 45 years of age,” Kejriwal was quoted as saying by ANI.
Kejriwal said that certain restrictions have been put in place to curb the recent surge in cases.
He also urged people to go for home isolation and not get hospitalised in case their condition is not severe.”If you occupy a bed in a hospital which could have been used for a person whose condition is severe, then the health infrastructure comes under stress and none can say, Delhi may need lockdown then," Kejriwal was quoted as saying by Hindustan Times.
He also asked people to head towards government hospitals instead of private ones. "The government is focusing on hospital management at present. Don't run towards private hospitals. the beds are less there. Please go to government hospitals," he was quoted as saying by NDTV.
He also requested people to check the availability of beds on the government’s app before going to the hospitals and occupy beds only in case of emergency.
Delhi reported 7,897 new coronavirus cases and 39 deaths on Saturday, taking its overall tally to over 7.1 lakh.
(With inputs from ANI, Hindustan Times, NDTV)
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