COVID-19 Positivity Rate Down, Tests Up: Odisha Govt

Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government on Saturday said the positivity rate of COVID-19 in the state has come down drastically.

In a statement, the government said on July 21, around 10,000 tests were conducted and the number of positive cases was 1,078 with the positivity rate of 10.78 per cent (pc). Over next three weeks, the tests were increased to nearly 50,000.

On August 14, the number of positive cases in the state was 2,496 with the positivity rate down to 5.2 pc. The number of positive cases per 10,000 tests has come down from 1,078 to almost 500.

Meanwhile, the number of daily tests has been steadily increased with highest 47,887 tests conducted on Saturday. The government claimed that the tests were increased from 20,000 to 50,000 in five days.

The statement said Kendrapada district has been leading in terms of testing and containing the spread of coronavirus. With a total tests of 40,267, the district conducted 26,800 tests per million which is way above the national average of 20,514 tests per million. The cumulative positivity rate is 1.95 pc which is much below the national average of 8.89 pc, it added.

On August 14, a total of 3,099 tests were conducted with 13 positive cases. The tests per million per day is 1,997, compared to 602 at the national level. The positivity is much less at 0.43 pc indicating that the virus is quite under control in the district, the statement said.

Also Read: Odisha’s COVID-19 Toll Touches 333, Four Deaths In Sambalpur