COVID-19 pandemic in Delhi
The first case of the COVID-19 pandemic in the Indian capital of Delhi was reported on 2 March 2020. Delhi has the seventh-highest number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 in India. The total number of cases reported as of Apr 2022, is 1,867,572 consisting of 26,158 deaths and 1,840,342 who have recovered.
| COVID-19 pandemic in Delhi | |
|---|---|
Jobless migrant workers at Delhi queuing up, maintaining social distancing, for free lunch during lockdown (14 April 2020). | |
| Disease | COVID-19 |
| Virus strain | SARS-CoV-2 |
| Location | Delhi, India |
| First outbreak | Wuhan, Hubei, China |
| Arrival date | 2 March 2020 (4 years, 1 month, 1 week and 3 days) |
| Confirmed cases | 14,06,719 |
| Active cases | 45,047 |
| Recovered | 13,39,326 |
Deaths | 19,344 |
| Fatality rate | 1.38 % |
Territories | All 11 districts |
| Government website | |
| https://delhifightscorona.in/ | |
On 22 March, Delhi observed a 14-hour voluntary public curfew (the Janata curfew) along with 75 districts in India, at the directive of the Prime Minister. A nationwide lockdown was later issued for 21 days from 24 March.
Thousands of "stranded migrant workers" from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar gathered in the Anand Vihar Bus Station on 29 March 2020, trying to get back home after the nationwide lockdown was imposed. More than 3000 people from a religious gathering in the Nizamuddin Markaz Mosque (in the Nizamuddin West area) were quarantined after suspicions that they had come in contact with infected people. 1300 Tablighi Jamaat were part of this crowd, including foreigners in Markaz.
It was reported that air quality index of Delhi improved on 28 March 2020, after the lockdown had reduced traffic. In April 2021, with cases increasing daily, CM Arvind Kejriwal announced a weekend curfew in Delhi every weekend. Notably, the traffic in the capital city decreased by a large amount. On 19 April 2021, Delhi turned the weekend curfew to a week-long lockdown. The lockdown was extended several times - on April 25, May 2, May 9, May 15 until May 24 (as updated on May 19). Now lockdown is unlocked on 8 June.