Covid-19: People now reluctant to undergo RT-PCR tests

File picture of a passenger arriving from Bhuj being tested at Dadar station. Pic/Ashish Raje

Despite a week of panic due to rising Covid-19 cases in other parts of the world, residents of Mumbai are reluctant to undergo RT-PCR tests. Even in the towers and plush localities, where residents were particular to get tested in the earlier pandemic waves, there is not much enthusiasm about testing now, said Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) health officials.

Reports on the rise of cases in China due to Covid-19 variants hit the country hard last week. The central and state governments issued precautionary guidelines that include scaling up RT-PCR tests at civic corporations level. But the number of tests hasn't gone up, as people are reluctant to get them done. The daily average of tests was 2,255 till December 20. Even in the past four days there hasn't been any change in test numbers. The test positivity rate (TPR) is also on the lower side at less than 0.5 per cent. Till Sunday there were 50 active patients in Mumbai.

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"There are hardly any cases so we can increase testing with tests of close contacts. We have given instructions to hospitals, if the number of symptomatic patients increases, we will start testing. Right now there isn't any need to start random testing at crowded places," said a health official from the Western Suburbs.

Another health official from a ward in the south of the city said, "Earlier people from plush societies did frequent testing and asked their maids/drivers to get tests done. But now people are reluctant. It may be due to the festive season or a sense of urgency hasn't hit people this time. We have been closely watching the numbers, if there is even a slight increase in cases we will start testing."