Testing Per Million

BENGALURU: In what may be a good indicator of a community’s susceptibility to Covid-19, the percentage of people testing positive vis-à-vis the number of samples is half of the national average in some states, while it is twice the number in some others.According to an analysis made by the Karnataka government, 2% of all people tested in Karnataka have turned positive as on April 21, while it is 4% nationally. It is 8% and 7% in Delhi and Maharashtra respectively, while West Bengal , Gujarat, Chandigarh and Telangana are between 5% and 7% on average.Unlike the ability to test samples or provide ventilators or other medical support, experts say the number of people testing positive is not in the control of any state or other agency, and given that there are still a large number of unknown unknowns about SARS-CoV-2, its transmission modes and infectivity capability, no particular reason can be attributed to the varying trend.However, one factor that states may want to look into would be their respective efforts in identifying people with travel history, their primary and secondary contacts and implementing strict isolation and quarantine.“Some states that responded late or have been inefficient in implementing isolation could be witnessing a higher positivity rate, but unless a specific study is conducted, it would be difficult to know,” one doctor working with the government said seeking anonymity.Further, even as both the Centre and various state governments agree that more testing is the way forward, a state-wise analysis shows that most states are still testing less than 500 samples per million people, which experts say need to change on a war footing.Twenty-one states/UTs are testing 500 samples or fewer per million people, with 18 of them testing under 400. Karnataka is testing 384 per million people, which is close to the national average of 395, much lesser compared to states like Tamil Nadu , Maharashtra and Delhi.While Delhi is testing 1,546 per million, the number is 651, 635 and 620 in Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh , while other states like Kerala Himachal Pradesh , among others are also better than Karnataka.