Delhi govt to open borders from June 8; state-run hospitals reserved for Delhi-ites: CM

The Delhi government on Sunday announced that national capital's borders will be opened for inter-state movement from Monday, June 8. The hospitals run by the state government shall be reserved for residents of Delhi till the Coronavirus pandemic subsides, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal asserted while addressing the video conference. The central hospitals will remain open for all, he added.

Delhi would need 15,000 beds by June end

Reiterating his apprehension that city hospitals may get crowded by people from other states in the absence of restrictions, the chief minister, said a five-member committee evaluated the situation and found that by the end of June, we will be needing around 15,000 beds to treat infected patients. There are around 10,000 beds each in Delhi government and Centre-run hospitals. The Cabinet has decided that beds in Delhi government hospitals should be reserved only for people of Delhi, he added.

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"We are opening Delhi borders from tomorrow. Delhi hospitals will be available for people of Delhi only, while Central hospitals will remain open for all. By the end of June, Delhi would need 15,000 beds," said Kejriwal in an address through video conferencing. He, however, said that the hospitals run by the Centre will be open for all.

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Hotels and banquet halls will remain closed: CM

The chief minister also said that all restaurants, malls and places of worship will resume activity in the national capital from Monday, however, hotels and banquet halls will continue to remain closed in Delhi.

“We may need hotels and banquet halls to place beds and to attach them with hospitals as cases have been rising in Delhi,” he said.

Withdraws the 'special corona fee'

In another big development, Delhi Government has decided to withdraw the 'special corona fee' levied at 70 per cent of the maximum retail price on all categories of liquor, with effect from June 10, 2020. However the state government raises VAT on all categories of alcohol from 20% to 25%.

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COVID-19 cases in Delhi

Delhi has so far reported 27,654 cases of COVID-19 according to the data released by the Union Health Ministry. Out of these 761 patients have succumbed to the illness while 10,664 people have recovered. Over the past few days, the rate of growth of new cases has been steep, which has raised concerns on the handling of the situation by the city-state's health infrastructure. 

READ | Five-member panel in Delhi predicts over 1 lakh cases in the capital by the end of June

(With inputs from agency)