Large-scale testing starts among service providers, house workers in Delhi

NEW DELHI: Delhi government on Friday started aggressive testing among special surveillance groups (SSG), which include cycle and autorickshaw drivers, goods carriage drivers, domestic workers, delivery persons and service providers like electricians, plumbers, etc.

The district administrations have also started rapid testing at special camps for vendors and transporters at Azadpur and Ghazipur mandis, apart from auto stands in central Delhi and the labour market at Kotla Mubarakpur.

The sphere of rapid tests was expanded to all 11 districts as part of fresh orders from Directorate General of Health Services on Thursday. In South West district, mobile testing centres were deployed as lack of space had made creation of fixed centres difficult.

The fresh guidelines also mandate that those living in containment zones and identified as contacts of Covid-positive patients, apart from those with flu-like symptoms and high-risk individuals, would have to be tested thrice through rapid antigen kits within 15 days of sealing of an area.

An official of South West district said that apart from the 44 antigen testing centres, tests have also started at dispensaries. On Friday, SSG testing camps were started at the furniture market in Najafgarh and the sabzi mandi at Naseerpur. Another such centre was opened at Bhagat Singh Park in Valmiki Mohalla at Chhawla.

In East district, antigen testing facilities were provided at 22 dispensaries with each being allotted a “catchment area”. A dispensary next to Ghazipur mandi was attached to it so that traders would be able to get tested there.

District authorities would also have to identify and test high-risk individuals living in areas that had witnessed isolated Covid-19 cases for more than 28 days. Contacts of Covid-positive cases would be screened and tested between the first and third day of sealing of an area, again between the fifth and seventh day and, finally, between the thirteenth and fifteenth day. The health records of these individuals would be saved in a database to help curb local transmission, an official said.

On Friday, the number of sealed zones went up to 633, compared with 458 on Wednesday.