India set to surpass China in Covid cases

Govt issues guidelines for pool-testing of migrant workers

India is set to overtake China in terms of confirmed Covid-19 cases as the country is expected to cross 80,000 cases soon.

According to the health ministry data, India added 3,722 new cases in a day, taking the tally to 78,003 as of Thursday morning. As many as 26,235 patients have been cured.

India ranks 12th among countries with most Covid cases, only a spot behind China with 84,025 confirmed cases. In terms of deaths, however, India’s total toll stood at 2,549 against 4,637 in China.

Health Minister Harsh Vardhan said the doubling time had slowed down in the past three days to 13.9 days, while it was 11.1 days in the past 14 days. Of the total active cases, 3 per cent were in the ICU, 0.39 per cent were on ventilators and another 2.7 per cent were on oxygen support.

Pool-testing of migrants, international travellers

The health ministry has issued guidelines for Rt-pcr-based pool-testing to assess the prevalence of Covid-19 among migrant workers and all those in institutional quarantine, including international passengers.

Pool-testing is a cost-effective and time-saving way to detect the spread of Covid. The pool sampling will be used as a surveillance tool in green zones as well where no case has been reported in the last 21 days.

According to the guidelines, trained laboratory personnel will collect throat and nasal

swabs of an identified cohort of 25 people following the protocol laid by the ICMR.

The samples will be transported in a triple-layer packaging to laboratories in the cold-chain.

“These pooled samples from 25 specimens shall be tested in the laboratory by RT-PCR method. The report will be conveyed to the quarantine or concerned facility within 24 hours,” the guidelines said. If any of the pooled samples tests posi

tive, individual samples would be tested.

Rapid antibody test kits

The ICMR has issued a revised guidance document on rapid antibody test kits and listed the firms whose kits have been validated and found satisfactory.

The health research body has underlined that such rapid antibody tests are not recommended for diagnosis of coronavirus infection.