Delhi to lift night curfew, reopen schools as Covid-19 cases decline? DDMA to decide today

DDMA is likely to discuss lifting of the night curfew, along with other relaxations, including reopening of schools, gyms and spas in its Friday meeting, said sources.

Representational Image (Credits: PTI)

New Delhi: Amid demands of easing Covid-19 curbs in the national capital, the Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) is scheduled to meet on Friday (February 4, 2022) to review the coronavirus pandemic situation, and take a call on lifting night curfew and reopening of schools in the city.

The number of daily Covid-19 cases in Delhi has been on the decline after touching the record high of 28,867 on January 13. The national capital had recorded a positivity rate of 30.6 per cent on January 14, the highest during the ongoing wave of the pandemic.

However, it took just 10 days for daily cases to drop below the 10,000-mark.

According to the sources, DDMA is likely to discuss lifting of the night curfew, along with other relaxations, including reopening of schools, gyms and spas in its Friday meeting. 

The DDMA is also likely to review the city government's order which makes it compulsory to wear a mask while driving alone, after the Delhi High Court termed it as "absurd" and asked why the decision was still prevailing.

Earlier, the Delhi government had recommended reopening of schools in the national capital, saying it was necessary to prevent further damage to the social and economic well-being of children as the Covid-19 situation in the capital had improved.

Asserting that online education can never replace classroom studies, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia had said the government had closed schools when it was not safe for children, but "excessive caution" was harming them.

A delegation of parents led by Chandrakant Lahariya, an epidemiologist and public policy specialist, had earlier met Sisodia and submitted a memorandum signed by over 1,600 parents demanding that schools be reopened.

Schools in the city were briefly reopened before being closed again on December 28 last year in view of the third wave of Covid-19 driven by the Omicron variant.

Meanwhile, Delhi on Thursday reported 2,668 fresh Covid-19 cases and 13 deaths, while the positivity rate dropped to 4.3 per cent, according to data shared by the city health department.

With this, the national capital's case count increased to 18,38,647 and the death toll climbed to 25,932, the latest health bulletin stated.

(With PTI inputs)