LUCKNOW: With UP health authorities prepared to launch a special door-to-door campaign to survey the spread of COVID-19 across six districts including Gautam Buddh Nagar (Noida) and Ghaziabad – of Meerut division from Thursday, Noida district administration has set a target to collect 4,000 samples per day to test for COVID-19.
Meanwhile, Uttar Pradesh breached the 25,000-mark by testing 26,489 samples during the last 24 hours.
According to Gautam Buddh Nagar DM Suhas LY, the samples would be tested using different techniques.
While 1,000 samples would be tested through lab-based reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) method, 3,000 shall be conducted through rapid antigen method daily.
The district administration would focus on samples collection from high-risk containment areas.
As per the Noida DM, over 20,000 samples were collected and tested by different labs in the district so far.
The DM claimed that the special drive, beginning Thursday, would not only help identify more positive cases but would also facilitate the speedy recovery.
“Gautam Buddh Nagar district’s sampling rate is around 10,000 per million, which is around five times the national sampling rate of less than 2,000 per million,” he said.
Suhas also claimed that in the wake of a surge of cases in the district, leaves of all the government employees were cancelled until further notice. Even annual Mudiya Poono fair, scheduled to begin from July 1, stood cancelled due to the COVID-19 scare.
The district administration has decided to restrict the movement of people to Govardhan in Mathura district, said the District Magistrate.
At the same time, while the state attained the target of 25,000-mark by testing 26489 daily sample testing on Tuesday, over 6,500 Covid help desks were created at different hospitals and departments.