New Delhi: Delhi recorded 3,944 fresh COVID-19 cases, taking the infection tally in the national Capital to over 5.78 lakh on Wednesday, while 82 more fatalities pushed the death toll to 9,342, authorities said. These fresh cases came out of the record 78,949 tests conducted the previous day, including 36,370 RT-PCR tests, while the positivity rate dropped to five per cent, according to the latest bulletin issued by the Delhi Health Department. This is the highest number of tests conducted in a day till date in the city. Eighty-two fatalities were recorded, pushing the death toll in the national capital to 9,342. The active cases tally on Wednesday dropped to 30,302 from 31,769, the previous day. The bulletin said the total number of cases has climbed to 5,78,324, while the recovery rate stood at over 93 per cent. The number of containment zones in Delhi rose to 5,772 on Wednesday from 5,669 on Tuesday. The highest single-day spike till date — 8,593 cases — was reported on November 11. Meanwhile, Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain on Wednesday said the COVID-19 positivity rate in the national capital is falling rapidly and it should drop to below 5 per cent level in the next few days. The recent spike in cases had come during the festive season and rising pollution level. While Durga Puja celebrations ended on October 25, Diwali fell on Saturday and Chhath was observed on November 20-21. The National Centre for Disease Control in a report drafted recently had warned that Delhi needs to be prepared for about 15,000 fresh cases of COVID-19 per day, taking into account the upcoming winter season-related respiratory problems, large influx of patients from outside and festive gatherings. According to the Wednesday bulletin, out of the total number of 18,693 beds in COVID hospitals, 11,327 are vacant. It said that 491 beds in COVID care centres are occupied by persons under quarantine, including travellers who have returned under the Vande Bharat Mission and bubble flights. The Delhi government had significantly ramped up testing in the past few weeks, with the count on several times crossing the 60,000-mark. On Tuesday, over 36,000 RT-PCR tests and 42,579 rapid antigen tests were conducted, the bulletin said. The number of tests done per million, as on Tuesday was over 3.38 lakh while the total number of tests stood at over 64 lakh. The bulletin said 5,38,680 patients have recovered, been discharged or migrated so far. The number of people in home isolation dropped to 18,423 on Wednesday from 19,400 the previous day.

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