GUWAHATI, Aug 18 - Health Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma today said ICMR has begun a sero-survey in Guwahati to gauge the city�s exposure to the COVID-19 virus.
The serological survey involves collection of blood samples to determine whether a person is infected with the novel coronavirus. It will also be used to detect whether the person was infected with the virus in the past and identify anti bodies being produced to combat COVID-19.
The survey began on Sunday, Sarma informed.
On Monday, 2,792 fresh positive cases were detected in the State taking the State�s coronavirus tally to 79667.
The death toll so far is 197 while 55,215 patients have been discharged.
�On an average we are getting 2,200-2,700 cases every day. This is because we are doing 50,000 tests every day,� Sarma said.
�The positivity rate is around 4-5 per cent. The doubling rate has also increased to 17 day which indicates that the graph has slowed down a bit,� the Health Minister said.
Among the casualties, 51 were reported from Kamrup Metro alone, followed by 21 in Dibrugarh and 18 in Tinsukia.
Also, around 368 patients have been administered plasma therapy till date in the State, he added.
