ICMR sits on national sero-surveillance report even after Delhi reports high exposure of its population to Covid-19

For nearly two months the Indian Council of Medical Research has not disclosed the detailed results of a national-level survey that would showcase the extent of the people’s exposure to novel coronavirus-2019 in India.

Following the release of a similar survey carried out by the Delhi government, health specialists and medical researchers asked the ICMR once again to come out in the open with the results of the first national-level serological survey. None, however, is willing to be quoted.

The Delhi survey found 23% of the population was exposed to the virus. Considering Delhi has a population of nearly 20 million, it means the virus was present in 4.5 million Delhites. Actual case detection according to the Govt figures is just over 125,000.

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The results also demonstrate how the existing testing strategy has probably missed millions of patients in the national capital who got infected by the novel coronavirus 2019 and cured in the natural course of time.

Even after considering the fact that blood sample-based antibody surveys always give higher numbers than any virus detection methods, the gap is too huge.

Last month in a press conference ICMR director-general Dr Balram Bhargava said only 0.73% population in the districts surveyed had evidence of past exposure to SARS-CoV-2. This claim, however, was not accepted by medical researchers and doctors who noted many signs of community transmission across the country.

There is a suspicion that big cities like Delhi, Mumbai and Chennai were left out from that calculation.

Also Read: Coronavirus India update: State-wise total number of confirmed cases

ICMR scientists in April were one of the first to pick up the evidence of community transmission from an early surveillance exercise carried out on 5,911 patients from 51 districts having SARI (severe acute respiratory illness) and ILI (influenza-like illness) between February 15 and April 2.

The researchers found 104 Covid-19 positive cases. Out of those 104 cases, there were 40 positive individuals from 36 districts with no travel and contact history - a sure shot signature of community transmission. The names of the districts were not disclosed.