Owing to the escalating Covid crisis in the national capital, CM Arvind Kejriwal has announced a complete curfew in Delhi. The lockdown will begin tonight from 10 pm till next Monday (April 26), in view of the rising Covid-19 cases in the city, officials from the LG’s office said.
Essential services, however, will be exempted during the weeklong curfew, official sources have said, adding that all private and government offices will work remotely.
Subsequently, long queues started forming outside liquor stores as people thronged to replenish their stock.
Delhi: People gather in large numbers outside a liquor shop in Khan Market; social distancing norms flouted.
— ANI (@ANI) April 19, 2021
Lockdown to be imposed in the national capital from 10pm tonight to 6am next Monday (26th April). pic.twitter.com/Fq1iNGJo1d
A Delhi resident outside liquor shop said that she had come to buy alcohol as it may help her since medicines may not be useful.
#WATCH Delhi: A woman, who has come to purchase liquor, at a shop in Shivpuri Geeta Colony, says, "…Injection fayda nahi karega, ye alcohol fayda karegi…Mujhe dawaion se asar nahi hoga, peg se asar hoga…" pic.twitter.com/iat5N9vdFZ
— ANI (@ANI) April 19, 2021
She said she has been having a peg every day since 35 years and this is all the medicine she has.
According to official sources, the decision was taken at a meeting held between Lt Governor Anil Baijal, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Delhi Police Commissioner SN Srivastava, Delhi’s deputy CM Manish Sisodia, Health Minister Satyendra Jain and other officials on Monday. India TV reported that the decision on extending the curfew for one more week was proposed by the Delhi CM which the L-G approved.
“Delhi is facing the fourth wave of Covid-19. 25,000 cases have been reported now. Delhi’s health system has been stretched to its limit, is under stress. Harsh measures will have to be taken to prevent a collapse of the health system”, Arvind Kejriwal was quoted by ANI as saying as he announced the complete curfew in Delhi.
Delhi’s health system has been stretched to its limit, is under stress. Harsh measures will have to be taken to prevent a collapse of the health system: Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal pic.twitter.com/D1otUXmPq8
— ANI (@ANI) April 19, 2021
It may be noted that the national capital witnessed the biggest surge in the daily coronavirus caseload as 25,462 fresh cases were reported on April 18(Sunday).
Yesterday, the Chief Minister of Delhi, Arvind Kejriwal had informed that Delhi was facing an acute shortage of oxygen.
Del facing acute shortage of oxygen. In view of sharply increasing cases, Del needs much more than normal supply. Rather than increasing supply, our normal supply has been sharply reduced and Delhi’s quota has been diverted to other states.
— Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) April 18, 2021
OXYGEN HAS BECOME AN EMERGENCY IN DEL
Owing to the alarming situation in the national capital, Kejriwal has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Commerce and Industries Minister Piyush Goyal urging them to ramp up bed capacity in central government-run hospitals and to ensure uninterrupted supply of medical oxygen.
In a Tweet, Kejriwal levelled some baseless allegations on the central government, saying that the quota of medical oxygen that was meant for Delhi has been ‘diverted’ to other states.
A senior official in the Commerce Ministry, however, rubbished the allegations and called them “blatant lies”.
