There is no evidence of community transmission of the coronavirus infection in India as all samples collected randomly to check the spread of the Covid-19 disease have tested negative, Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) director-general Balram Bhargava said on Thursday.
“All random samples that we tested for severe acute respiratory infections are negative for Covid-19. This suggests there is no community transmission in India yet,” Bhargava said.
India has so far registered three deaths and 166 positive cases.
Community transmission takes place when a person tests positive for the disease but doctors are not able to trace the source of the infection. It indicates undiagnosed and often asymptomatic people are unknowingly causing infection, which makes it difficult to break the chain of transmission.
ICMR has been conducting community surveillance by lifting random samples from intensive care unit (ICU) patients suffering from severe acute respiratory infections (SARI), including severe pneumonia. These samples are taken from people with no travel history or contact with a positive patient.
Almost all of 1,000 samples collected since March 15 have returned negative for Covid-19, Bhargava said. ICMR is expected to release the exact data later in the day