To tackle pandemic, UP govt pushes for more Covid testing: 13 more labs launched in state

Stating that the kind of attention Covid has got, it has proven that at a time when humans are planning to go to Mars, how one virus has challenged the entire human race. “Till the time there is a proper vaccine or medication to beat the virus (novel coronavirus), wide-scale testing and timely treatment of symptomatic people are the only way to avoid deaths. Timely interventions have saved a large number of lives in the country which has a far larger population than other countries,” Adityanath said.

He also said that soon UP will soon have its first COBAS-6800 BSL-3 level laboratory in Praygraj and third-generation BSL laboratories in Shahjahanpur, Gautam Buddh Nagar, Gorakhpur and Kannauj. Of the 13 laboratories launched on Monday, 10 are in government medical colleges of Ayodhya, Jalaun, Azamgarh, Amebdarkar, Saharanpur, Basti, Bahraich, Banda and Badaun, the remaining three are private sector laboratories, one each in Barabanki, Moradabad and Kanpur. Each lab will have a testing capacity of 5,000 samples a day, the government said.

The CM said that these laboratories would not only assist in Covid-19 testing but would also help in identification and fight against many vector-borne diseases like chikungunya, kala-azar and encephalitis.

While he praised institutions like Lucknow’s King George’s Medical University, SGPGIMS, RML Lucknow for conducting tests more than their capacity, he expressed concern that institutions like IMS at Banaras Hindu University, GSVM Kanpur as well as medical institutions in Gorakhpur were conducting tests below their capacity. “This work would not be possible without teamwork. Therefore, while we have been successful in ensuring testing facility in every division, the testing facility would be now made available in every district of the state,” Adityanath added.