With another 25 persons testing positive for COVID-19 at IIT-Madras, an analysis showed that a cluster of cases has surfaced at Mandakini hostel. The test positivity rate of the samples tested on the campus was 3.8%, according to Health Secretary J. Radhakrishnan.
“Excluding Chennai, freshers from 13 States had arrived here recently. One suspicion is that one of them could have been infected, resulting in the spread of infection to others. Nevertheless, this is a pandemic. Other than looking at the source of infection, what is more important is preventing further spread. This is why we have taken up suppression testing. Testing is progressing in all 19 hostels on campus,” he told reporters on Saturday.
As the COVID-19 cases started to increase at IIT-Madras, the Health Department took up “suppression testing” to test all. So far, 1,420 persons were tested of which 55 were found positive for COVID-19, he said.
