<p>The Centre on Thursday issued guidelines to conduct RT-PCR based pooled sampling for migrant workers, stranded Indians returning from abroad for the prevalence of COVID-19.</p>.<p>The Centre also asked health authorities to conduct similar tests for surveillance purposes in green zones and districts that have not reported a Covid-19 case for the past 21 days.</p>.<p>The Centre’s guidelines came as a large number of workers have started returning to their home states on board the ‘Shramik Special’ trains and evacuation of thousands of Indians stranded across the globe.</p>.<p>“A decision has been taken to use one time RT-PCR based pooled sampling for surveillance purposes for migrant workers in institutional quarantine facilities, international passengers in institutional quarantine facilities/hotels ear-marked for quarantine and for surveillance purposes in green zones,” the Health Ministry said.</p>.<p>The guidelines for the pooled test came against the backdrop of a large number of pilgrims stranded at Nanded Huzoor Sahib gurdwara tested positive for COVID-19 after they were evacuated through special buses to their villages in Punjab.</p>.<p>As many as 1,225 of the 4,216 returnees from Nanded Huzoor Sahib Gurdwara had tested positive for coronavirus earlier this month.</p>.<p>At a video conferencing meeting on Sunday, the Bihar government had conveyed to Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba that a large number of migrant workers returning to the state had tested positive for COVID-19.</p>.<p>On Thursday, the confirmed cases of coronavirus infections touched 78,003, an increase of 3,722 in a single day, while the death toll spiked by 134 to reach 2,549. As many as 26,235 persons or 33.63% of the confirmed cases have been cured of the disease and discharged from hospitals.</p>
<p>The Centre on Thursday issued guidelines to conduct RT-PCR based pooled sampling for migrant workers, stranded Indians returning from abroad for the prevalence of COVID-19.</p>.<p>The Centre also asked health authorities to conduct similar tests for surveillance purposes in green zones and districts that have not reported a Covid-19 case for the past 21 days.</p>.<p>The Centre’s guidelines came as a large number of workers have started returning to their home states on board the ‘Shramik Special’ trains and evacuation of thousands of Indians stranded across the globe.</p>.<p>“A decision has been taken to use one time RT-PCR based pooled sampling for surveillance purposes for migrant workers in institutional quarantine facilities, international passengers in institutional quarantine facilities/hotels ear-marked for quarantine and for surveillance purposes in green zones,” the Health Ministry said.</p>.<p>The guidelines for the pooled test came against the backdrop of a large number of pilgrims stranded at Nanded Huzoor Sahib gurdwara tested positive for COVID-19 after they were evacuated through special buses to their villages in Punjab.</p>.<p>As many as 1,225 of the 4,216 returnees from Nanded Huzoor Sahib Gurdwara had tested positive for coronavirus earlier this month.</p>.<p>At a video conferencing meeting on Sunday, the Bihar government had conveyed to Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba that a large number of migrant workers returning to the state had tested positive for COVID-19.</p>.<p>On Thursday, the confirmed cases of coronavirus infections touched 78,003, an increase of 3,722 in a single day, while the death toll spiked by 134 to reach 2,549. As many as 26,235 persons or 33.63% of the confirmed cases have been cured of the disease and discharged from hospitals.</p>
