VIJAYAWADA: The total number of samples tested for diagnosis of Covid-19 in the State as on date stands at 1,08,403. Out of the total, 1,06,878 have tested negative and 1,525 positive. The positivity rate stands at 1.41 per cent, which is far better than the national rate of 3.82 per cent. The maximum number of 13,985 samples were tested in Visakhapatnam, which accounts for 12.9 per cent of the total samples tested in the State. The number of positive cases stands at 29 only, that is 1.9 per cent of the total.

When it comes to Kurnool, the total number of samples tested so far was 9,186, which is 8.47 per cent of the total in the State, while the number of positive cases is 436 that is 28.59 per cent of the total cases. Kurnool stands top in corona cases in the State. 

In Guntur, which has the second highest number of 308 cases (20.19 per cent), a total of 10,743 samples were tested, which is 9.91 per cent of the total samples in the State. Krishna district, which stands third in the State with 258 corona cases, as many as 9,126 samples were tested, which is 8.41 per cent of the total samples and the percentage of cases is 16.91.

As many as 8,864 samples have been tested so far in Nellore with 90 cases (5.9 per cent of the total). It accounts for 8.17 per cent of the total samples tested. Kadapa with 83 cases, has tested 7,841 samples, Chittoor with 80 cases, tested 8,638 samples, Anantapur with 71 cases, tested 5,624 samples and Prakasam with 61 cases, tested 7,236 samples. In all, 7,936 samples have been tested in West Godavari, which is 7.32 per cent of the total, and 9,353 samples in East Godavari making 8.62 per cent of the total. 

4k samples tested in Vizianagaram, 6k in Srikakulam

The number of positive cases in East Godavari is 45, while the corona count in West Godavari is 59. Srikakulam with just 5 cases, has tested 5,952 samples. Vizianagaram, which is yet to report a single positive case, has tested 3,919 samples.

Out of the total 5,943 samples tested for confirmation of Covid-19 from 9 am on Friday to 9 am on Saturday, 4,752 samples were tested in Truenat labs (49), while the remaining samples were tested in 10 VRDL labs in the State. Out of the total, 430 cases alone were tested in VRDL at GMC in Guntur. The least number of samples were tested at VIMTA in Hyderabad (2). 

Special Chief Secretary (Health) KS Jawahar Reddy, during his media briefing on Friday, said that the number of tests in the State would increase in the coming days as AP is in the process of getting more testing labs. In addition to the existing VRDLs (Viral Research and Diagnostic Laboratories) at Sri Venkateswara Institute of Medical Sciences (SVIMS) in Tirupati, Siddhartha Medical College in Vijayawada, Rangaraya Medical College in Kakinada, Government General Hospital in Anantapur, Government Medical College in Guntur, Rajiv Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS), Kadapa, Andhra Medical College (AMC), Apollo Diagnostics (Hyderabad), Kurnool Medical College (Kurnool), SVR Ruia Government General Hospital (Tirupati), VIMTA (Hyderabad), more labs will be set up. 

JIPMER in Puducherry has given its permission for setting up VRDL at Srikakulam GGH and Prakasam GGH, but approval from the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR ) is awaited. Trial tests were conducted at Nellore GGH and clearance from ICMR is awaited. Two more test labs are being planned in PPP mode in West Godavari and Vizianagaram districts.  Permission has been accorded for using viral load test labs in Visakhapatnam and Vijayawada, which can test 250 samples each per day. 

Permission has been given for using CBNAAT (cartridge-based nucleic acid amplification test) machines in Visakhapatnam, Vijayawada and Anantapur, which can test 50 samples each per day.  The number of tests conducted per day in the State will increase significantly once the labs become operational.