Mainland Covid Tally Surpasses 20,000

The daily Covid-19 caseload on the mainland has topped 20,000 infections.

According to the National Health Commission, there were 1,568 locally transmitted and 18,491 asymptomatic infections on Tuesday for a total of 20,059, up from 17,772 the day before.

The number of cases in Guangzhou surpassed 6,200.

Health officials said more makeshift hospitals are being built there amid a growing number of patients.

Chongqing, meanwhile, reported some 2,800 infections. And there were about 370 new cases in Beijing, with Daxing district deemed a high-risk area.

The figures come as multiple Chinese cities cancelled routine mass Covid tests this week, days after Beijing announced limited relaxations of its dynamic zero-Covid policy.

The National Health Commission (NHC) on Friday issued 20 rules for "optimising" zero-Covid, where certain restrictions were relaxed to limit its social and economic impact.

Routine mass PCR testing is one of the key tools used to trace outbreaks, with cities such as Beijing and Shanghai requiring residents to show 72-hour test results to enter public spaces and use public transport.

Shanghai abolished mandatory mass testing by city district on Sunday, China News Service reported citing anonymous local officials.

However, officials caveated that it will "only be carried out when the source of infection and transmission chain are unclear, and it has been spreading in the community for a long time", echoing language from the NHC announcement.

Shijiazhuang, a city of 11 million in northern Hebei province, also vowed on Sunday to implement the 20 measures in an open letter to residents.

Residents would still require a 72-hour test result to use public transport and to access key sites such as hotels, according to local media reports.

Other cities including Yanji in northeastern Jilin province and Hefei in eastern Anhui province also cancelled routine mass testing earlier this week.

The new rules say the "scope of nucleic acid testing shall not be expanded" and that mass testing will not be conducted in areas without outbreaks except for "key personnel and sites of employment".

The measures also urged local governments to "correct unscientific practices such as two or three tests per day". (AFP/Xinhua)

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