India’s cumulative tests for detection of COVID-19 have crossed 4.3 crore so far, of which 1.22 crore were conducted in the last two weeks, the Union Health Ministry said.
Three states — Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra — account for nearly 34 per cent of the total tests, it said.
India’s daily testing capacity has crossed 10 lakh and the tests per million too have seen a sharp increase, reaching 31,394, the ministry highlighted Twenty-two states and Union Territories have tests per million better than the national average.
A total of 10,16,920 tests were conducted in 24 hours on Monday taking the cumulative tests conducted so far for detection of coronavirus infection in the country to 4,33,24,834.
The guiding principle within the Centre-led strategy of ‘test, track and treat’ has been aggressive testing by the states and Union Territories. Sustained high levels of testing lead to early diagnosis and enhanced recoveries, the health ministry said, adding that 1,22,66,514 tests were done just in the last two weeks.
“States and UTs are progressively increasing their testing capacity. The states contributing the maximum to the overall number of tests include Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra. These three states account for nearly 34 per cent of the total testing,” the ministry underscored.
There has been sustained growth in the average weekly numbers of tests. It has increased by four times since the first week of January. Expanded diagnostic lab network and facilitation for easy testing across the country have given it a substantial boost.
“The tests per million have also seen a sharp increase to 31,394,” the ministry said, adding Goa, Delhi, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu are reporting the maximum number of tests in a day.
Goa’s tests per million stand at 1,30,091, followed by Delhi with 85,923 tests, Andhra Pradesh 65,078, Tamil Nadu 59,923, Assam 44,404, Karnataka 44,061, Punjab 34,815 and Maharashtra 32,723, according to the data shared by the ministry.
With 69,921 people testing positive for coronavirus infection, India’s COVID-19 tally mounted to 36,91,166, while the death toll climbed to 65,288 with 819 new fatalities being reported in a span of 24 hours, the health ministry data updated at 8 am showed.
