NEARLY 1 IN 3 TESTED POSITIVE

Almost one in three persons tested for Covid-19 in Delhi this week had the infection. The average positivity rate in Delhi during the week was 30.5%, a number that is perhaps as indicative of the inherent bias in testing as it is of the spread of the pandemic in the Capital.

NEW DELHI: Almost one in three persons tested for the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) in Delhi this week had the infection, according to government data. The average positivity rate – the percentage of people who test positive – in Delhi during the week was 30.5% , a number that is perhaps as indicative of the inherent bias in testing (which has only become more marked, especially in Delhi) as it is of the spread of the pandemic in the capital.

The national average positivity rate is around 7%, according to the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR).

According to government data, 4,900 samples were tested each day on average during this week, down from 5,590 tests a day on average during the week ending June 7, and 6,129 tests a day on average in the week before that.

On Saturday, Delhi recorded 2,134 cases and 57 deaths, the daily bulletin released by the Delhi government showed.

“This just means that currently the numbers are on a rising trend and there is transmission happening in the community. There is no other way the city could record so many cases a day. However, the increasing positivity rate could also be a result of labs testing only those with symptoms.

If you test only the people who are likely to have the infection, the positivity rate will of course be high,” said Dr Shobha Broor, former head of the department of microbiology at AIIMS, New Delhi.