With the National Capital reporting nearly 19,000 new Covid cases in a single day and with the positivity rate reaching the 25 percent mark, the government has banned dining at restaurants and bars to curb the spread.

The new restrictions come after the Delhi Disaster Management Authority raised concern over the fast spread of both the Delta and the Omicron variant in the capital. As part of the rescue plan, the Delhi government has decided to enforce strict measures to bring down the infected numbers.

&ldquoIn view of the increase in positive cases it was decided to close the restaurants and bars and to allow &lsquotake away&rsquo facility only. It was also decided to allow operation of only one weekly market per day per zone,&rdquo read Delhi L-G, Anil Baijal's tweet.

However, restaurants can still serve food through takeaways and home deliveries.

Last week, the government had imposed a weekend curfew from Friday 10 pm to Monday 5 am. Restaurants and bars were already functioning with 50 per cent capacity post the city coming under yellow alert owing to the sudden surge of cases in December.

The new guidelines have also restricted the functioning of markets as one weekly market shall be allowed to run in one zone.