New Delhi June 15 In Delhi thousands of commuters crowded into underground train stations and shopping malls on Tuesday prompting some doctors to warn it could lead to a resurgence in Covid-19 infections. Major Indian cities have begun lifting strict lockdowns as the nationwide tally of new infections has dropped to its lowest level in more than two months. But disease experts and doctors have cautioned that a race towards resuming business as usual would compromise vaccination efforts as only about 5 per cent of all 950 million eligible adults have been inoculated. Doctors say Delhis near-complete re-opening is concerning. The citys authorities have said they would reimpose strict curbs if cases rise. Thousands died in the capital in May as oxygen supplies all but vanished and families pleaded on social media over scarce hospital beds. People paid 20 times the usual price to secure ambulances and hearses many died in parking lots and morgues ran out of space. "Delhis top #mall saw a footfall of 19000 people last weekend- as soon as it reopened. Have we gone totally mad?" Ambrish Mithal of Max HealthCare in New Delhi said on Twitter. Number of cases in #Delhi in last 24 hrs- 131??? Delhis top #mall saw a footfall of 19000 people last weekend- as soon as it reopened Have we gone totally mad? Wait for #COVID19 to explode again- and blame the govt hospitals country Its never our fault#coronavirus — Dr Ambrish Mithal (@DrAmbrishMithal) June 15 2021 "Wait for #COVID19 to explode again- and blame the government hospitals country." In the early hours of Tuesday Delhis underground rail network put out alerts on Twitter about peak traffic and longer waits responding to angry commuters angry about long queues. After a strict five-week lockdown in Delhi authorities have fully re-opened shops and malls and allowed restaurants to have 50 per cent seating. Suburban rail networks can run at 50 per cent capacity and offices have been partially reopened. Vaccinations have slowed however; the city government said inoculation centres for people ages 18-44 would start shutting down on Tuesday as doses were scarce. "Delhi ought to have unlocked far more scientifically. We are inviting trouble!" Arvinder Singh Soin a surgeon and leading liver transplant specialist said on Twitter. Delhi ought to have unlocked far more scientifically. We are inviting trouble! — Dr. Arvinder Singh Soin (@ArvinderSoin) June 14 2021 Nationwide India reported 60471 new Covid-19 infections over the past 24 hours the lowest number since March 31 data from the health ministry showed. The South Asian countrys total Covid-19 caseload now stands at 29.57 million the second-highest globally behind the United States. India added 2726 deaths overnight taking the overall tally to 377031 data showed. Reuters

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