COVID-19: Large scale testing is the key!

In this article, the author has highlighted tracking, tracing and testing as a key step that must be escalated to contain the spread of COVID-19 in India, adding that how extensive testing proved beneficial in Mumbai's Dharavi. The author has also raised apprehensions regarding various water-borne diseases with the onset of monsoon and stated that people with chronic ailment must be protected through testing.

Hyderabad(Telangana): It has been three months since the World Health Organisation(WHO) asserted that extensive testing was the key in the war on COVID-19. Though India has focused on procuring and developing testing kits, the current testing rate still stands at 1,50,000 per day.

Though the 52.47 per cent recovery rate is comforting, the dismal testing rate is proving fatal for high-risk groups (people with cardiac, renal and pulmonary ailments, diabetes, hypertension). As the Lancet study revealed that 170 crore people worldwide (20 per cent of the world population) are at greater risk from corona, the CCMB director’s suggestions are worth considering.

Rakesh Mishra, Director, CSIR-Center for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB), stated that extensive testing played a crucial role in controlling the contagion in Dharavi, Asia’s largest slum. He insisted that India should increase its testing capacity to 10,00,000 samples a day. At present, there is a shortage of RT-PCR testing kits. In addition, importing real-time RT-PCR primers and probes has proven to be an expensive affair. As a solution, the CCMB has developed a cheaper nested PCR procedure, which awaits ICMR’s approval. Meanwhile, scientists at NIMS, ESI and TIFR have developed RT-LAMP method, which diagnoses COVID-19 within half an hour. ICMR has approved a new antigen/antibody testing developed by a South Korean firm. In order to win the war on corona, it is imperative to take the large-scale testing path.

READ:COVID-19 medicine only two weeks away: Baba Ramdev

New Zealand’s response to the pandemic was one of its kind. On the other hand, the toll in 8 states is shooting up at an alarming rate as India recorded 3.5 lakh COVID-19 cases. The already cash-strapped state governments have given up on testing. As a result, the pandemic has reached community transmission stage, leaving no one unharmed. Germany could prevent overburdening its public health system through localized treatment. India can follow a similar approach to tracing and testing. As the COVID-19 treatment costs have become an unbearable burden for many, there is a need to cover the health insurance costs of the poor through Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana. As monsoons have arrived in India, medical experts are worried that several mosquito-borne diseases along with corona could pose a major public health threat. In order to tackle this impending disaster, the number of COVID-19 labs must be increased. People suffering from chronic illnesses must be protected through testing and isolation. There is no way India can win this battle unless the contagion is restricted.

READ: France commits 200 million Euros for India's COVID-19 response