Next sero survey in Delhi to begin within fortnight, says health minister

The next serological survey to check for the prevalence of antibodies against the novel coronavirus among people will start in Delhi within a fortnight, Health Minister Satyendar Jain said on Thursday.

Seroprevalence of antibodies to COVID-19 reduced to 25.1 per cent in September from nearly 29 per cent last month among people in the national capital, the Delhi High Court was informed on Wednesday.

These are the findings of the third round of sero survey carried out by the AAP government in the national capital between September 1 and September 7.

The first sero survey was conducted by the Delhi government in collaboration with the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC).

The next two surveys were conducted by the Delhi government.

"In the first survey conducted, the data was collected from 11 districts but for the September survey, we divided Delhi into 280 parts and the geographical area covered was more. The next sero survey will also be conducted on the same format and will start in the next 10-15 days," Jain told reporters here.

On the increase in the number of fatalities recorded in the last few days, he said, "In September, there was a spike in cases across the country. In Delhi, there were 4,200 cases reported and the patients were hospitalised at that time. They succumbed to the virus after 15-20 days. The number of cases have seen a decline."

On Wednesday, the national capital recorded 41 COVID-19 fatalities. On Tuesday, 48 deaths were reported, the highest number of fatalities recorded in a day since July 16, when the city saw 58 fatalities. On September 26, Delhi recorded 46 deaths, 42 the next day and 37 on September 28.