Plug testing gaps

INDIA’s Covid testing has been a cause for concern ever since the outbreak of the pandemic. The country is conducting a modest 2.8 lakh tests per 10 lakh population, slightly better than Brazil but way behind the UK and the US. The failure or inability of various states to ensure that the testing kept pace with the fast-rising rate of infections was one of the reasons why the second wave was so destructive. While the testing rate has been dismal, the accuracy and credibility of the entire process have also not inspired confidence. The detection of a scam, wherein fake Covid-negative reports were allegedly issued by a company and two private labs during the Kumbh Mela in April, has laid bare the messy state of affairs. It is suspected that the labs fudged reports in the name of random people on the basis of their identity cards and phone numbers, apparently in an attempt to meet the daily quota of 50,000 tests set by the Uttarakhand High Court.

Though this scam pertains largely to persons who were not even tested, it’s quite likely that some of the labs did not do proper testing of the samples received and might have issued negative reports to people who were actually Covid-positive. The investigators should look into all kinds of irregularities in the functioning of these labs. The infected people who were falsely declared Covid-negative must have transmitted the virus during the ‘superspreader’ event itself or on their return to their native places.

The rot is certainly not confined to Uttarakhand. Most states ought to get their act together in terms of the coverage, pace and reliability of testing. There is a dire need for ramping up testing facilities in urban as well as rural areas so that the time-consuming exercise of sending samples to other places and waiting for reports for days can be avoided. Timely testing and isolation are the key to controlling Covid infections. It’s hoped that course correction will be done sooner than later to pre-empt the third wave.