Published 13:10 IST, June 27th 2020
Serological survey: Officials witness mixed feelings from Delhiites on first day
In Delhi, panning across eleven districts, this mammoth exercise will be carried out, over 20,000 samples are expected to be collected
At CDMO office, Paharganj, there was no breaking away from the hustle and bustle. The bylanes of Paharganj generally witnessed unloading or uploading of goods, bullocks pulling carts, small shops opening up for businesses. Today it witnessed a completely different scenario - Lab technicians coordinating with doctors of various dispensaries under central District of Delhi, apparatus in which samples are to be collected are being arranged by volunteers and police personnel keeping a close eye. The natives had one question in mind- what is exactly the serological survey.
The natives of Paharganj, who are being exposed to such a survey, weren't wholly aware. There was a feeling of foreboding but at the same time, they are participating to help the government tackle with COVID 19.
Serology (antibody) tests are largely used for surveillance among the community. They can be used on people who have already been tested positive for the virus or even those who are asymptomatic and can reveal insights on immunity against coronavirus. In Delhi, panning across eleven districts, this mammoth exercise will be carried out, over 20,000 samples are expected to be collected.
At the Central District office, Paharganj, several teams have bee formed. One team consists of a doctor, lab technicians, volunteers and police personnel. Around 11 am, several teams started their journeys from the office for the sample collection, some on bikes, some in their cars and some teams started on foot as they went into the houses in Paharganj area for sample collection.
The exercise has been jointly taken up by the Delhi government and the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) between June 27 and July 10.
An official at NCDC spoke on the survey, " this is a giant exercise, Al volunteers have bee trained properly over the past few days. We want people to be aware that this doesn't have any diagnostic value but samples are collected to study further the spread of virus. We won't be forcing anyone to collect samples, it will be voluntary. We expect the people to cooperate with us so that we can strategise how to tackle with the rising covid 19 cases."
The official further adds, "the authorities can learn about the total number of people that have been infected, including those infections that might have been missed. These surveys also can help estimate how much of the population has not yet been infected so far".
Updated 13:10 IST, June 27th 2020