Some containment zones may be shut till mid-May, early June

Containment zones - 68 in Delhi at last count have to pass a rigorous test if they are to be de-sealed. No Covid-19 case should be reported from there for 28 consecutive days. Strict enforcement by the administration and total compliance by the residents can set them free. Even a single new case can prove to be a setback, with the countdown to 28 days starting all over again.

Fingers are crossed, but going by the situation in some of these zones, around a dozen may be de-sealed by early next month. Thousands are living there with multiple restrictions and that will surely be a relief. These zones were created towards the end of March, Dilshad Garden being the first. In others, life may return to normal by the middle of May or towards beginning of June.

No +ve cases in 9 sealed zones of East district

In four containment zones - Dilshad Garden, Mansara Apartment at Vasundhara, Khichdipur and Kalyanpuri - no positive case has been detected in the past 17 to 20 days. So, they may be the first ones to return to normalcy. When more than three Covid-19 positive cases are detected in an area, it is declared a containment zone and sealed. Police barricades come up and no one is allowed to go in or come out. The residents depend on a few essential service providers who deliver goods outside the entrance of the containment area. All roads leading to such a zone are monitored by cops.

No doubt, there is temporary hardship. Many people in these zones are facing a cash crunch because they cannot go out to withdraw money from ATMs. However, at some places such as Mansara Apartment, mobile ATMs have been deployed. “People cannot go out for a stroll or walk their pets,” said a resident, Saurabh Mukherjee. These restrictions are giving positive results. “No Covid-19 positive case has been detected from any of the nine containment zones created in the east district,” said sources. Most of these zones were set up between March 31 and the first week of April. One containment zone covering J, K and H pockets of Dilshad Garden and G,H and J blocks of Seemapuri under Shahdara district was created on March 26.

Delhi government had launched ‘Operation Shield’ in all containment zones to check the spread of coronavirus. The containment operation includes sealing, home quarantine, isolation, ensuring supply of essentials and door-to-door checking of people. All primary and secondary contacts are traced and sanitisation and disinfection drives launched. Those showing symptoms of the disease are taken to hospitals for sample collection and placed under quarantine. “We have witnessed greater compliance on social distancing and wearing of masks even in areas close to containment zones. Due to fear of infection, people are following the containment measures strictly,” said an official involved in the exercise.

Test reports of samples recently collected in many containment zones are pending. A senior officer in the north district said that no positive case has been reported from Bblock of Jahangirpuri since April 8 when the containment zone was created. “Extensive sanitisation, perimeter control and surveillance measures are being implemented in all the zones so that the coronavirus does not spread. So far, the results have been encouraging," said an official.