Spike in Covid cases| Nationwide mock drills to be held on April 10 and 11: Health Ministry

The advisory comes on a day when India recorded 1,590 new COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours, which is the highest single day count in 146 days.

The advisory comes three days after PM Modi chaired a high-level meeting on the COVID situation (Reuters file image)

Amid a fresh spike in the coronavirus case count, the Union health ministry, along with the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), wrote to the state governments and Union territories on March 25, asking them to ensure “optimum testing” and promote the usage of masks in crowded settings.

The health ministry said testing for COVID-19 has “declined” in some states over the past several weeks, and is below the standard prescribed by the World Health Organisation (WHO), which is 140 tests per million population.

Testing at the level of districts and blocks also varies, with some states heavily relying on the less sensitive rapid antigen tests, stated the letter, which was jointly issued by Union health secretary Rajesh Bhushan and ICMR director general Dr Rajiv Bahl.

“Hence, it is critical to maintain optimum testing for COVID-19, equitably distributed (with suitable modifications to address emergence of new cluster of Covid cases) across the states. This is especially important to identify any ‘emerging hotspots’ and take pre-emptive steps to curb virus transmission,” it said.

The advisory comes on a day when India recorded 1,590 new COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours, which is the highest single-day count in 146 days.

“A gradual but sustained increase in trajectory of COVID-19 cases in the country is being witnessed since mid-February 2023,” the health ministry said.

As on date, most of the active COVID-19 cases in the country are largely being reported by Kerala (26.4 percent), Maharashtra (21.7 percent), Gujarat (13.9 percent), Karnataka (8.6 percent) and Tamil Nadu (6.3 percent), it noted.

Source: https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/trends/health/amid-covid-spike-health-ministry-asks-states-to-ensure-optimum-testing-promote-mask-usage-in-crowded-places-10310711.html