Delhi on Monday registered 11,491 new coronavirus cases – its highest ever one-day rise in infections since March last year. The Capital’s total count of infections since the beginning of the pandemic in 2020 rose to 7,36,688.

The Capital’s toll went up to 11,355 as it recorded 72 more deaths in the last day. Delhi’s positivity rate stood at 12.44% on Monday, up from the 9.43% reported on Sunday.

Earlier on Monday, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal called a review meeting amid the surge in coronavirus cases in the Capital.

After the meeting, the Kejriwal’s office announced that 14 private hospitals and four government facilities would be completely dedicated to coronavirus treatment.

On Monday morning, India reported a record 1,68,912 new coronavirus cases. The country’s overall tally of infections since the pandemic broke out last March rose to 1,35,27,717. With this, India now has the second-highest number of infections globally, just behind the United States.

The toll went up to 1,70,179 with 904 more deaths in the last day. India’s tally of active cases stood at 12,01,009. The number rose by nearly a lakh from Sunday’s tally of 11.08 lakh.

Even as coronavirus cases continued to rise, thousands of devotees, many without masks, thronged the banks of the Ganges during Kumbh Mela celebrations in Uttarakhand’s Haridwar city. The police said that a stampede may occur if they try to enforce physical distancing guidelines even as the coronavirus cases continue to surge.