Beijing authorities have requested that all the residential communities in the city to strengthen management on people getting in and out, in the wake of an increase of newly detected cases of COVID-19 over the past several days.

All people having close contact with the Xinfadi Market should take nucleic acid tests and isolate themselves at home for further observation, the standing committee of the Beijing Municipal People's Congress stressed at a meeting held in the city on Tuesday.

The meeting, chaired by Cai Qi, Beijing's Party Secretary, requested that the strictest measures should be carried out in response and every minute and second should be seized to conduct investigations, tests and origin-tracking to stop the novel coronavirus pneumonia from spreading and bring the number of newly confirmed cases under control.

Officials noted at the meeting that all markets selling fresh farm produce and restaurants near the Xinfadi Market should be strictly inspected and disinfected, and that people working in these venues should receive nucleic acid tests.

In addition, all medical and health institutions, schools, senior care centers and public transport should raise their level for control and prevention of COVID-19, and people with a high risk o

f being infected should be forbidden to leave Beijing to prevent an outbreak within the city or spreading the virus outside.