Assam to conduct 50,000 random tests for COVID-19 to check community transmission
Guwahati/IBNS: Keeping in view the surge in the numbers of COVID-19 positive cases in the state, the Assam government has decided to launch Assam Targeted Surveillance Program (ATSP) from Jun 17 by aiming to conduct 50,000 random tests for the deadly virus in a week’s time.
The programme aims to check community transmission of the Novel Coronavirus and it will target the vulnerable areas of the state including Guwahati.
Under the programme, the state Health department will collect samples of people working in the locations such as truck parking places, loading and unloading centres, godown areas, weigh bridges, dhabas etc.
The state Health department will also collect samples of the staff of hotels used as institutional quarantine and frontline workers including police personnel will be tested for the new virus.
In Guwahati, the state Health department has opened 12 sample collection centers at different locations.
Fears of the outbreak increased among the people after at least 25 COVID-19 positive cases with no travel history were detected alone in Guwahati recently.
Assam Health minister Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma said that the present situation in Guwahati was not so good in view of the COVID-19 cases.
“At least 25 COVID-19 positive cases have been detected in Guwahati which have no travel history. We want to test at least 50,000 samples in the next 15 days,” Himanta said.
According to the Assam government data, the state has so far reported 4309 positive cases for COVID-19 and out of these, 552 cases have been detected alone in Kamrup (Metro) district.
The Kamrup (Metro) district administration has so far declared 109 different locations in Guwahati city as containment zones and now there are 80 active containment zones in the city.
The Assam Health Minister recently told a press conference that the government will have no other option but to declare lockdown again in Guwahati if more positive cases are detected in the random tests.
35-year-old Payal Sen, a housewife in Guwahati, said that the government should declare lockdown again to control the worst situation.
“We should have to follow the social distancing norms and it is needed for our safety. I think the government should declare the lockdown again for another one month,” Payal Sen said.
(Reporting by Hemanta Kumar Nath, Guwahati)
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