Palpa faces shortage of COVID-19 test kits, people returning daily from India not being tested

With the rise in number of people entering Palpa from other countries, the district is facing shortage of COVID-19 testing kits

RSS

Palpa, a district in State 5, is grappling with the COVID-19 testing kit shortage as the number of people entering the district from India and other third countries increases day by day.

Palpa Help Desk Coordinator Tuk Prasad Bhattarai said test had been suspended since Monday. It means people rescued from Nepal-India border points are deprived of the test. Around 450 citizens entered the district in the past three days. The swab collection and Rapid Diagnostic Test (RDT) were continued till Sunday, but the process has been stalled since Monday. ''The situation has forced us to hand those rescued population to respective local levels without the test,'' he said.

District Public Health Office, Palpa Officiating Chief Bishwanath Bhattarai admitted that there was shortage of kits to continue test. ''Earlier, we had 1,000 kits for RDT and 450 for PCR test, but the existing stock is very limited and we require it for emergency purpose,'' he said.

As shared by District Administration Office's Information Officer, Yagyeshwor Panthi, since the month of Chaita, RDT results of 551 people and PCR reports of 79 samples have come negative and the PCR reports of 170 are awaited. Locals entering the district via Belhiya point in Rupandehi, Krishnangar in Kapilvastu and other several points in Nawalparasi were and are being rescued. It was provisioned to conduct their tests before sending them to their hometown.

As per provisions, those tested positive during the RDT are sent to isolation and negative are handed to respective local levels, according to District Coordination Committee Officiating Coordinator Meera Marasini said. Chief District Officer Yadav Subedi said those rescued and sent to local levels are made to stay in 14-day quarantine and to stay in home quarantine for the next one week following the RDT. Meanwhile, a meeting of the Corona Prevention and Control Committee, Palpa on Tuesday agreed to demand kits from the State and Federal governments.

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