A medic takes a swab sample from a resident for nucleic acid test at a community in Haidian District of Beijing, capital of China, May 13, 2022. Beijing has started three additional rounds of mass nucleic acid testing in 12 districts from Friday to Sunday, as the Chinese capital races against time to contain the latest resurgence of COVID-19 infections. Photo:Xinhua

 
After a month of arduous efforts to contain Omicron, the Chinese capital has reported a total of 1,642 cases in this round of the outbreak, but Beijing is now seeing a decline in the number of daily infections at the community level, authorities said on Wednesday. With the overall epidemic situation now controllable, Beijing's college entrance exams will be held as scheduled.

A positive trend has been observed for the past two days as both daily reported cases and cases found at the community level have declined, Zhong Dongbo, head of the Beijing Municipal Health Commission, said at Wednesday's press briefing. 

The epidemic had previously spread to 15 districts and at its peak, transmission chains in the city reached 13 to 17, but now it has been reduced to three cluster infections. 

While the few cluster infections have slightly brought up the epidemic curve, the overall situation is improving, Zhong said.  

Most of the early transmission chains have been cut off, and the fight against Omicron has come to a crucial point near the end. Over 80 percent of infections are being found among people put into quarantine. 

Primary and middle schools are still required to teach and study from home, authorities said at the press conference. High school and college entrance examinations will be held as scheduled.