Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, June 7: The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) is conducting the fourth round of “National serosurvey for COVID-19” in June 2021 in the same 70 districts in which the first three rounds were conducted.
The survey, as per GMC Srinagar, will cover the general population aged 6 years and above and Health Care Workers working in district hospitals of these districts.
“The findings of the serosurvey will help in ascertaining the current situation of COVID-19 situation in India,” the GMC’s Department of Community Medicine said.
In Jammu & Kashmir, the survey will be conducted in Pulwama district through the Department of Community Medicine, Government Medical College, Srinagar during the third week of the current month for which meeting with DC Pulwama Baseer-ul-Haq, CMO Pulwama Dr Hassina Mir and District epidemiologist Dr Syed Arshad was held to chalk out the plan as per ICMR guidelines.
“During the survey, 400 blood samples will be collected across already designated 10 cluster and 100 samples from health care providers in district Pulwama,” Dr S. Muhammad Salim Khan, HoD Community Medicine and Nodal Officer for Pulwama study by ICMR said.
He said that in the last three rounds conducted in 2020, the seroprevalence of SARS CoV-2 infection among the general population was found to be 2%, 27.3% and 31.5% respectively during the months of May-June, August-September and December.
“This fourth round has important significance due to widespread infection during second COVID-19 wave and the vaccination drive against SARS CoV-2 infection among the adult population during last 4-5 months,” he said.
The study is coordinated by ICMR’s National Institute of Epidemiology and facilitated by the National Institute of Research on Tuberculosis Chennai for the Pulwama district.
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