Cases cross 2K-mark, rapid antibody tests begins in city
New Delhi: Soon after procuring rapid antibody test kits, the Delhi government on Sunday began testing people for Coronavirus in various containment zones spread across the city, officials said.
Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain on Saturday said the AAP government has acquired 42,000 such kits.
The rapid antibody tests were initiated in Delhi on Sunday for all the containment zones across the national Capital, the officials said.
Two kinds of diagnostic tests are being currently prescribed for use in India — the RT-PCR test and rapid antibody test — as per global health norms.
A reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test is a laboratory technique combining reverse transcription of RNA into DNA that detects the virus while the antibody tests, which use blood, detect the body's response to the virus.
In rapid antibody test, the result will be positive only if the antibodies have been generated. So, even if a person is infected but the antibodies are not generated, the result will come negative.
RT-PCR test takes time and is a costly affair, because of its elaborate kit. On the other hand, the rapid antibody test is less expensive and the result can come in 20-30 minutes, experts said.
Rapid antibody tests are generally used in hotspots where the infection is found concentrated in a given area.
A hotspot is a zone from where a large number of positive cases are reported.
Meanwhile, thirty-five more people have tested positive for Coronavirus in a containment zone in south Delhi's Tughlakabad Extension area, authorities said on Sunday, making it possibly one of the largest such zones in the national Capital in terms of number of cases.
Earlier, three Coronavirus cases were reported from this neighbourhood, prompting authorities to declare the area a containment zone.
"After 35 new positive Coronavirus cases were found, some more lanes in Tughlakabad area have been sealed," Deputy Commissioner of Police (South East) R P Meena said.
Some houses from lane number 24 to 28 have been sealed completely, he said.
Police will ensure that no one comes out of the containment zone and only authorised people will be allowed to go inside, he added.
According to officials, the area was declared a containment zone after the initial three cases were detected. Later, 93 more people were tested, out of which 35 have tested positive for COVID-19.
The total number of Coronavirus cases in the national Capital on Sunday climbed to 2,003, with 110 fresh cases and two deaths being reported in a day, according to Delhi government authorities.
Of the total 45 fatalities reported till date, 25 of the victims were aged 60 and above, they said.
Ten of them were aged between 50-59 and 10 were aged less than 50 years, officials said.
By Saturday night, the number of cases of the deadly virus in the city stood at 1,893 including 43 deaths.
With two more fatalities reported, the death toll from COVID-19 in Delhi has jumped to 45.
