On March 16, India recorded its' third coronavirus death and subsequently many states have announced its' first positive case.
In Maharashtra, the number of positive cases is going to touch 50 and it also has affected an Army soldier.
Across the world, the virus-positive cases increased suddenly by large numbers. In such a scenario, can India handle the situation?
This new predicament has called the attention towards the country's resource mobility and the capability of the health infrastructure. Where does India's current preparedness leave us? Here's the breakdown:
90 samples being tested per day in each lab at present
180 sample testing capacity per day possible at each lab
1.2 lakh India's current capacity to do tests per day
72 ICMR labs equipped to do testing
49 More labs under organisations like CSIR, Department of Biotechnology and DRDO to be equipped to test by this weekend
ICMR setting up two new testing locations (NCR and Bhubaneswar) for fast diagnostic systems. These two centres could test up to 1,400 samples every day
7-10 days later, accredited private labs can be allowed to test for COVID-19
11,500 Samples tested at labs under ICMR till Monday