The Central government had advised all States and Union Territories (UTs) to conduct seroprevalence surveys in consultation with the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) to generate district-level data between July 6 and July 14.
The statement released by the Central government said, "The Union Health Ministry has referred to the findings of the 4th round of National Sero-Prevalence Survey done by ICMR and has advised the States to conduct the seroprevalence studies in their own States/UTs in consultation with ICMR so that such studies follow a standardized protocol, and the findings of such studies can then be utilized quickly by the respective State/UT to guide objective, transparent and evidence-based public health response to COVID-19."
The findings of the National Sero-survey among the seventy districts of India reveal that Madhya Pradesh has the highest seroprevalence with 79 per cent, followed by Rajasthan with 76.2 per cent, Bihar with 75.9 per cent, Gujarat with 75.3 per cent, Chhattisgarh with 74.6 per cent and Uttarakhand with 73.1 per cent.
The National serosurvey by ICMR was designed to capture the extent of the spread of COVID-19 infection at the national level. The findings of such serosurveys can then be utilized quickly by the states to guide objective, transparent and evidence-based public health response to COVID-19.
At least two-thirds of the population surveyed in eleven states were found to have developed coronavirus antibodies.