Beijing is set to increase the frequency of nucleic acid testing for people in high mobility positions, like delivery couriers, house cleaners, security guards and catering workers, as the capital is stuck in a stalemate in the fight against the Omicron variant.

These employees are highly mobile and many work in enclosed environments, so they should have strict protective measures to prevent infection, Xu Hejian, spokesperson of the Beijing municipal government said at a press conference on Tuesday.

The Beijing authority also announced plans to recruit volunteers for intensive mass nucleic acid testing in the city, requiring applicants to be retired medical workers or those having degrees or working experience in medicine-related areas under 60 years old.

Beijing detected 35 COVID-19 infections in the 24-hour period ending at 3 pm on Tuesday. One of them was a delivery courier in Tongzhou district, local officials revealed at the press conference on that day.

The first two infections who triggered the latest outbreak in Beijing were two renovation workers, who were a couple, from Shunyi district in the capital, according to media reports.

The Beijing authority told local households to suspend renovation projects at a press conference on April 25.

One month after the latest COVID-19 resurgence began on April 22, Beijing's fight against Omicron is still at a stalemate with daily cases seeing a new peak on Sunday, despite strict measures including at least a dozen rounds of mass nucleic acid testing in three major districts.

The Global Times learned that many residential communities in Chaoyang and Fengtai districts had enhanced management measures, for example, banning delivery couriers and house cleaners from entering and requiring residents to show entry-exit certificates, green health codes and negative nucleic acid testing results within 48 hours when entering the community.