6.6 Lakh Infected With Covid-19 In Hyd: CCMB Study

[Anta Assamey]

Since a few days, Hyderabad has been reporting below 500 odd Covid-19 cases and everyone is of the opinion that the threat of the virus is coming down in the city. But a study conducted by Hyderabad-based Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB) and the Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (IICT) have revealed shocking details that nearly 6.6 Lakh people got infected with the virus.

CCMB and IICT study disclosed that the virus is not just spreading through contact but also through faeces. These institutes collected the sewage samples that covered about 80 percent of sewage treatment plants (STPs). Hyderabad needs 1,800 million litres of water per day and only 40 percent was processed at different STPs.

When the samples were tested nearly 6.6 percent of the city’s population showed symptoms of the virus. Currently the number of active cases who are shedding the virus may be around 2.6 Lakh.

The study further stated that a large proportion of the affected individuals are asymptomatic and did not need hospitalisation which is the only revealing factor. Regarding this study, CCMB director Dr. Rakesh Mishra said, “Such studies if carried out in coordination with civic bodies to identify the hotspots in the city and monitor the dynamics of the infection rate can assist the system in taking necessary measures.”

All the experiments were conducted at the CSIR-CCMB Covid-19 testing facility.