Over 12,000 COVID-19 tests in last 4 days in Noida

Noida (UP), Jul 8 () More than 12,000 tests for COVID-19 have been carried out in the last four days in Uttar Pradesh's Gautam Buddh Nagar district as screening and testing "increased multifold", senior officials said on Wednesday.

The officials also said the district administration's two-pronged strategy -- containment and early detected of cases -- has helped it keep the fatality rate "one of the lowest in the country" during the pandemic.

Gautam Buddh Nagar, which has recorded the maximum cases (2,935) in the state and has the second-highest active cases (1,211), has witnessed 29 deaths due to the novel coronavirus, according to the latest available official figures.

So far, over 32,000 COVID-19 tests have been carried out across Gautam Buddh Nagar including the 12,030 testings in the last four days, official sources said.

"We have increased our testing multifold. Antigen testing kits are being used for large-scale testing every day. In the last four days, we have done 12,030 tests in total, this includes 7,528 antigen tests and 4,502 RT-PCR tests. Because of this, positive case numbers have definitely gone up, but it has helped us in containment and isolation of positive cases, thereby reducing positivity rate," District Magistrate Suhas L Y said.

"This testing includes COVID contacts, high-risk persons in containment zones, symptomatic patients and others. We shall continue with the above approach on intensive screening and testing," Suhas said in a letter addressed to Gautam Buddh Nagar residents.

The recovery rate of patients in the district stands at 60.81 per cent while the mortality rate is 0.98 per cent, according to the latest available official statistics.

The DM said over 1,500 teams have been formed comprising officials of health and other departments which are visiting households and identifying high-risk groups, persons with COVID-19 symptoms.

These teams are carrying thermal screening equipment, pulse oxy-meters for oxygen saturation monitoring, he said, adding: "The better we do out co-morbidity management, lesser will be our mortality rate."

The DM also sought the support of resident welfare associations (RWAs) as well as apartment owners' associations (AOAs), while assuring them that adequate beds are available in the hospitals of the district for COVID-19 treatment.

Suhas lauded the efforts of frontline workers in the fight against COVID-19 as he apprised residents that several government officials who are frontline workers have tested positive for COVID-19 and have been hospitalised.

Senior doctors including the chief medical officer, the additional CMO and two of the three sub-divisional magistrates in the district are currently undergoing treatment for the infection and their duties have been assigned to other officers for the time being, according to officials. KIS CK