Centre asks states to ramp up Covid testing

NEW DELHI: With Covid-19 cases crossing 5.85 lakh on Wednesday and India entering Unlock-2, the Centre asked states to ramp up testing and contact tracing to ensure all symptomatic people are tested immediately.
In a joint letter, health secretary Preeti Sudan and Indian council of medical research (ICMR) director general, Balram Bhargava called "test-track-trace" a key strategy for early detection and containment of the pandemic, and stressed that it is the "only way to detect the infection early and prevent the spread".
With an aim to remove impediments in testing, states and UTs have been advised to facilitate testing at the earliest by enabling all qualified medical practitioners, including private practitioners, to prescribe Covid test to any individual fulfilling the criteria for testing as per ICMR guidelines.
In fact, ICMR has strongly recommended that laboratories should be free to test any individual in accordance to its guidelines and state authorities must not restrict an individual from getting tested, as early testing will help in containing the virus and saving lives.
At present, a prescription from a government doctor is necessary to take a Covid-19 test in any laboratory in India.
"Efforts should be made in 'campaign mode' by setting up camps/ using mobiles vans in high incidence areas to collect samples of all symptomatic individuals as well as their contacts, and get those samples tested by using rapid antigen tests. The positive individuals should be treated according to the treatment protocol and the negative ones should be tested for RT-PCR," the letter said.
The letter has been marked to chief secretaries, advisers to governors and lieutenant governors across states and UTs.
Pulling up states for not utilizing full capacities, the letter said "The capacity utilisation of private laboratories for Covid-19 is grossly sub-optimal." It advised the states to ensure full utilisation of all Covid-19 testing laboratories.
The Centre asked states to focus on contact tracing as it holds the key to contain the virus. "It has been observed that in some states, delineation of containment zones and contact tracing has not been undertaken with rigour and meticulousness that is required," the letter said.