The perils of taking a Covid test in Delhi

Waiting time to get a Covid test done at private labs is anywhere between three and 10 days. And the quest for a bed in a hospital or getting yourself assessed at a Covid Care Centre for institutional quarantine or home isolation after you are confirmed to be Covid-positive can delay the process even more.

Delhi was testing 5,000-5,500 samples daily, till last week. Over the past week, this number has grown three-fold, mainly because of rapid antigen tests being conducted at multiple centres across the city. A total of 50,320 Covid-19 tests have been carried out in Delhi over just the past three days - 17,533 on Saturday, 18,105 on Sunday and 14,682 on Monday.

With the cost of Covid-19 tests being capped at Rs 2,400, home collection of samples has been stopped by most laboratories.

Sources told ToI that the tests include RT-PCR, the gold standard for Covid-19 testing and antigen testing, which is being conducted largely in containment zones. The latter gives quicker results but those at high risk need to be re-tested even if they test negative.