Bhubaneswar: Odisha has increased COVID-19 testing to more than 50,000 tests a day.
In the number of tests, Odisha is fifth in India after Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Bihar and Karnataka.
However, it is leading among large states in terms of tests per million per day at 1,096 with Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka occupying the next three slots.
The national average is 542 tests per million per day, almost half of Odisha’s.
COVID-19 testing in the state crossed 50,000 and touched 52,795 on Saturday (August 15) while 50421 tests were conducted on Sunday (August 16). Of these, 2924 and 2244 samples were found positive respectively.
The state is planning to further increase the number of tests.
On August 12, Institute of Life Sciences (ILS) Director Ajay Parida had informed that Odisha had set a target to conduct 1 lakh COVID-19 tests a day.
“The daily tests will be raised to 50,000 a day by August 20. The number of antigen tests will also be increased significantly,” he had added.
Also Read: COVID-19 Positive Cases Drop In Odisha Despite Increase In Testing
Also Read: COVID-19 Tests Crossed 1 Lakh In Two Days, Says Odisha Govt
On July 24, the Centre had asked nine states, including Odisha, to ramp-up tests.
In a letter to Principal Secretaries (Health) and Secretary (Health) of these states, Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Health Lav Agarwal wrote: “In terms of testing, the state should aim to achieve a minimum of 14 tests per one lakh (140 tests per million) per day, while ensuring a positivity rate of less than 10 per cent.”
