TDP president N. Chandrababu Naidu on Thursday expressed concern over the delay in obtaining results pertaining to over 16,000 COVID-19 tests at a time when identifying every infected case was crucial to prevent its spread.
Mr. Naidu, in a letter to Chief Secretary Nilam Sawhney, said it was necessary to obtain the test results in real-time.
The lesser number of tests and delay in obtaining the results was due to lack of enough laboratories in the State, he observed.
“At present, there are only eight COVID-19 testing laboratories in the State. This is causing inordinate delay delay in obtaining the results. Hence, it is pertinent to partner with private testing laboratories to speed up the process. This will not only help in tackling the disease in a better way but also better the health infrastructure in the long run,” Mr. Naidu observed.
“The spread appears to be continuing unhindered in the State. It is important to identify the number of positive cases by increasing the number of tests and obtaining the results at the earliest,” he said.
Stating that the TDP government had procured 250 TrueNat testing kits for effective control of tuberculosis (TB) in the State, Mr. Naidu said the tests help in detecting COVID-19 effectively. For further confirmation, RT-PCR tests might be conducted. Accordingly, the government should use the TrueNat kits in larger numbers, he said.
‘Ensure quality PPEs’
Expressing concern over the alleged non-supply of quality personal protection equipment (PPE) and sanitisers to the frontline warriors, Mr. Naidu said it would expose them to risk. The government should finalise the norms for standardisation of the PPEs, he added.