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Engage CDRI for genome sequencing in UP, Yogi tells officials
Chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Monday asked the officials concerned to engage the Lucknow-based Central Drug Research Institute (CDRI) for genome sequencing of the coronavirus in UP in order to study mutations
Chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Monday asked the officials concerned to engage the Lucknow-based Central Drug Research Institute (CDRI) for genome sequencing of the coronavirus in UP in order to study mutations.
“Doing a deep study and tracking any coronavirus mutation is important. Several institutes in the country have been studying the virus. Under the circumstances, rope in the Central Drug Research Institute for doing genome sequencing of the coronavirus in UP. Such scientific research would certainly help in protection from the pandemic in the future,” he said at a Covid-19 review meeting.
CDRI is a premier drug research institute under the CSIR (Council of Scientific and Industrial Research).
He also discussed the state’s preparations for tackling the speculated third wave of the pandemic.
It was important to have proper training of the personnel who would be engaged in pandemic control and treatment, he said.
“Such training would begin in Noida and Lucknow today (Monday). Similarly, paediatric training would start on June 1 (Tuesday). Accomplish the training as soon as possible,” he said.
He also said UP’s Covid recovery rate was now 96.6%. In the last 24 hours, the positivity rate (the number of positive cases against the total number of tests) was 0.5%, he added.
“In the last 24 hours, the state did 3.12 lakh tests. Since March last year, a total of 4.94 crore tests were conducted in the state. No other state did as many tests,” he claimed.
Experts had predicted over one lakh fresh positive cases each day in UP in May, but the state had merely 1,497 cases in the last 24 hours, he said. In the same period, a total of 5,491 Covid patients recovered, he added. So far, a total of 16.37 lakh people had recovered from Covid-19 in the state, the chief minister noted.
After a steady decline in the intensity of Covid infection in the state, the oxygen demand and supply were now balanced in the state, he said, adding that oxygen audit helped to cut wastage significantly.
Sero-survey in state from June 4
Chief minister Yogi Adityanath also announced that a sero- survey will begin in the state from June 4 and the results were likely to come by the month-end.
Sero-survey or seroprevalence studies are based on analysis of antibodies through blood sample collection. Periodic sero-surveillance to monitor the Covid-19 trend has been going on in the country, including UP.
“It’s important to do a sero-survey. Sample collection for it will begin on June 4. Results and analysis of the survey are likely to come by June-end,” he said.
