New Delhi, Jul 8 (PTI) Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has sought a detailed report from the health secretary with an analysis of the factors behind the COVID-19 deaths in the national capital in the last fortnight, officials said on Wednesday.

According to officials, Delhi reported over 800 COVID-19 deaths in the last two weeks, with 397 people succumbing to the disease in the first week of July.

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Officials said the objective of seeking the report is to take all possible measures to reduce the number of coronavirus deaths in the national capital.

A total of 3,165 COVID-19 deaths have been reported in Delhi so far. 

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The COVID-19 death rate in Delhi has seen a sharp decline since June, Delhi government said in a statement.

At the peak of coronavirus incidence, Delhi saw 120 deaths in a single day in the first week of June. However, the number of deaths on July 7 went down to 50, it said.

"The detailed analytical report on COVID-related deaths in Delhi will aid implementation of more stringent measures to reduce deaths.

"It will also help mitigate the other causes that have added to the casualties, such as comorbidities, age and health condition," the statement said. 

The first COVID-19 fatality was reported in the national capital on March 14 and within a month, the death toll zoomed to 1,000. The next 1,000 deaths were reported in eight days and the toll stood at 2,035 on June 19.

On July 4, the COVID-19 death toll climbed to 3,004 in Delhi, it said.

Steps like increase in the number of ICU beds , installation of more oxygen beds, plasma bank among others, have reduced the death rate and the positivity ratio, said the government. 

The government will take further steps after obtaining a detailed analysis of the COVID-19 deaths from the health secretary to ensure zero fatalities due to the virus, it said.

The health secretary has assured that he will soon prepare and submit a detailed analysis of the deaths related to COVID-19 so that the government can execute further measures to reduce the death rate, the statement said.

Delhi government has set up a plasma bank and is encouraging patients who have recovered from COVID-19 to donate.

It has decided to obtain feedback from patients on their willingness to donate blood plasma at the time of discharge from hospitals.

In plasma therapy, the antibody-rich plasma from a recovered patient is extracted and administered to another patient. Trials are trying to find out if the antibodies can help such patients recover from the disease.

The plasma therapy has shown good results in treating coronavirus patients in Delhi.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)