NOIDA: The number of Covid cases reported in December rose to 43 as eight more patients, including a Bulandshahr resident undergoing treatment at a private hospital in the city, tested positive for the infection in the district on Wednesday.
A security guard posted at Noida Covid Hospital in Sector 39, a health care worker who is a contact of a Covid patient, and two patients who visited out-patient departments of hospitals recently were also among the people who tested positive, officials said. During a state-level meeting on Wednesday, GB Nagar officials were told to ramp up testing.
Additional chief secretary (health) Amit Mohan Prasad also directed health department officials to conduct a comprehensive testing drive in a Greater Noida school after three students, all residents of neighbouring Ghaziabad, were found positive recently.
Officials have also been asked to increase testing. According to health department data, the district is conducting about 2,000-2,100 tests daily on an average in December, which is around 25% of the daily target of 7,900, including 4,400 through rapid antigen kits and 3,500 RT-PCR tests.
The number of tests in the past six months also indicates a declining trend. Official data shows that over 1.32 lakh tests were done in June, which dropped to 1.21 lakh in July. In August, only 79,036 tests were conducted, while in September the figure stood at 72,120. In October, 65,572 tests were done, which further fell to 49,643 in November. Currently, there are 24 active cases in the district, of which 15 patients are in home isolation and nine in hospitals.
