Covid-19: Weekly test positivity rate down to 4.2%

With a constant decline in daily Covid-19 cases over the last week has brought down the weekly test positivity rate (TPR) — total positives out of the tests conducted

With a constant decline in daily Covid-19 cases over the last week has brought down the weekly test positivity rate (TPR) — total positives out of the tests conducted — to around 4.2%, which is lower than the threshold level of almost 5%, indicating that the coronavirus transmission is under control.

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According to the district health bulletin, Gurugram has recorded 187 new infections, on an average, per day, over the last week. On Saturday, 151 new Covid-19 cases were reported, taking the total tally to 55, 638. The Covid-19 toll stands at 139. No deaths were reported on Saturday.

Over the previous week, from December 6 to 12, the TPR remained at 6.8%, with an average of 356 new cases recorded daily.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), a positivity rate of less than 5% indicates that the epidemic is under control. A higher TPR is usually an indication of higher transmission in the community, with chances of more people having contracted the virus but not having been tested.

On Saturday, 6,344 tests were administered, with the health department continuing with its strategy of conducting the maximum number of tests in the week every Saturday. This week, 4,472 tests, on an average, were administered daily, which is almost 23% lower than the average of over 5,800 tests per day between December 6 and 12.

Dr Virender Yadav, chief medical officer, said that increased testing over the last month has helped in lowering the TPR. “The TPR is now below 5%. If 4,000 tests are being administered, only 2% are being detected positive for SARS-CoV-2 virus. The department is doing sufficient testing compared to the number of people who are getting infected,” said Yadav.

The downward trend in new infections and a high recovery rate, of almost 96%, has also led to an overall decline in active cases. Currently, Gurugram has 1,586 active cases, of whom 1,425 are in home isolation, while 157 are seriously-ill and undergoing treatment in private hospitals and four in district Covid care centres. Considering the decline in hospitalisation, the district administration on December 15 reduced the reserved bed capacity from 50% to 35%.