With 26,351 coronavirus COVID-19 samples tested on Tuesday, total tests so far rises to 2,44,893: ICMR

The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) on Tuesday evening confirmed that a total of 26,351 samples of the coronavirus COVID-19 were tested till 9 pm (IST) taking the total samples tested so far to 2,44,893. A total of 853 of the samples tested on Tuesday were positive.

An official statement read, "A total of 2,44,893 samples from 2,29,426 individuals have been tested as on April 14, 9 pm IST. 10,307 individuals have been confirmed positive among suspected cases and contacts of known positive cases in India. Today, on April 14, till 9 PM IST, 26,351 samples have been reported. Of these, 853 were positive for SARS-CoV-2."

Earlier, in a press briefing, a senior ICMR official had said, "ICMR has 166 labs and 70 other labs are private. We have enough kits to cover for six weeks."

ICMR had also added, "We have received another installment for RT-PCR kits which are far more sufficient in numbers, which would essentially mean that we would be able to cover ourselves for a long period of time. Additionally, we are ordering close to about 33 Lakh kits for RT-PCR (Reverse Transcription-Polymerase Chain Reaction) & 37 Lakh rapid kits are expected to come at any point in time."

The Union Health Ministry on Tuesday asserted that the government can confirm a break in the chain of transmission if no case is reported for 28 days from a specific area. Addressing a press brief,  Health Ministry Joint Secretary Lav Aggarwal replied to a question regarding 40-day lockdown, "We have to break the chain. If no coronavirus COVID-19 case is reported for 28 days from a specific area, we can say we have been able to break the chain of transmission."

A total of 602 hospitals have been earmarked as dedicated COVID-19 facilities in coordination with a capacity of 1,06,719 isolation beds and 12,024 ICU beds reserved for such patients in the country, said Agarwal. He added that 1,211 fresh coronavirus cases and 31 new deaths have been reported in the last 24 hours, taking the number of cases to 10,363 and deaths to 339 in the country.

Aggarwal stated that the positive cases have infected the youths but the death cases are seen in older people. He asked people, residing in rural or urban areas, to inform frontline workers if they develop symptoms.