India Ramps Up Covid-19 Tests As Cases Top 6,700

A paramedic uses an infrared thermometer to measure the temperature of a police officer alongside a road during a 21-day nationwide lockdown to slow the spreading of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Ahmedabad on April 9, 2020

India said on Friday it ramped up coronavirus testing as documented cases rose above 6,700 and topped 12,000 across South Asia.

The epidemic has killed 206 in India, data shows, with its capital Delhi and financial hub Mumbai emerging as hotspots, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi is under pressure to extend a 21-day nationwide lockdown beyond Tuesday, when it is due to end.

India’s lockdown of 1.3 billion people has left millions out of work and forced an exodus of migrant workers from the cities to their homes in the hinterland.

But officials have warned that widespread transmissions could be disastrous in a country where millions live in dense slums, social distancing norms are often impossible and the health care system is overburdened.

The government said on Friday it had increased daily tests for COVID-19 on Thursday to more than 16,000 people – from a previous daily average of 5,000-6,000 – but only 320 people were found to be carrying the disease.

“We are not finding many positives,” senior health ministry official Lav Agarwal told reporters.

An internal assessment by a government body, the Indian Council of Medical Research, forecast the number of virus cases would have hit 820,000 by mid-April without the 21-day lockdown.

The state government of Delhi, where a religious gathering by a Muslim missionary group last month caused a spike in cases, has said it may have to extend the restrictions.