Antibody testing to start at Mangor: Goa CM Pramod Sawant

PANAJI: Chief minister Pramod Sawant said on Monday that the state government would commence antibody testing at Mangor Hill, the state’s first containment zone. He said that besides knowing whether the person tested is Covid positive or negative, the test will also reveal if the person’s body has generated the antibody to fight the infection.
He also said that the antibody tests would confirm that persons who are Covid-19 positive can’t spread in the infection after 15 days have elapsed.
Meanwhile, reacting to demands to reopen Mangor Hill, Sawant said that the government can’t yet open it since the area is still reporting cases on a daily basis. “If cases had reduced, we would have thought about reopening it,” he said. He also said that the state government has “given relief” to residents who live there and want to go to work but can’t.
“Those who wish to go to work must get a Covid-19 test done, and if their results are negative, they can go to work,” Sawant said. “However, they must make arrangements to stay elsewhere and not return to Mangor Hill.”
Also, the state government has decided to allow shops selling essential commodities in the area to open. He said that of the 8,000-odd persons residing at the containment zone, 2,000 have already been tested, and 100% of those having co-morbid conditions have already been tested. He said that if anyone else with co-morbid conditions wishes to be tested, the government is ready to do the test.
Sawant on Monday met MLAs from Mormugao taluka and MMC councillors to elicit their views on the Covid crisis in Vasco. He said that it has been 35 days since Mangor Hill was declared a contaiment zone, and that the government understands the problem of the people. He also told reporters that the people of Mangor Hill should have patience and wait for another 15 days, and that the government is set for a cleanliness drive in the area by engaging workers from Mangor Hill itself.