Covid testing in Kasaragod might run into hassle as govt to close Spice Health unit, fires skilled technicians of CUK lab

By Express News Service

KASARAGOD: The covid RT-PCR testing within the district is more likely to hit a tough patch with the federal government deciding to wind up the cellular testing unit of Spice Health. On common, Spice Health used to check 700 samples on daily basis.

Now, your complete covid assessments of the district will probably be performed on the Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Lab of the Central University of Kerala (CUK). But officers mentioned CUK lab is now testing solely 250 samples a day — from the height of two,500 samples per day — after the federal government fired all of the 12 advert hoc technicians and knowledge entry workers employed beneath the National Health Mission.

The CUK lab now has three new however untrained lab technicians, mentioned an official. “An RT-PCR lab needs special skills. The technicians who were fired were trained and efficient. We will be losing precious time training the recruits who joined now,” mentioned an official. The least the federal government may have performed was to soak up the skilled technicians beneath the brand new hiring scheme, he mentioned.

According to the official, the lab would want not less than 15 technicians to conduct 2,000 assessments per day.

The different drawback is the covid testing lab is now run by the college’s division. “With regular classes resuming, students will need access to the lab,” mentioned the official.

A brand new lab constructing funded by the NHM is prepared however it doesn’t have a generator and a UPS to make sure an uninterrupted energy provide. “These things were brought to the notice of the district administration months ago. But the officials are waking up to it only after the government decided to wind up the service of Spice Health,” mentioned the official quoted above.

In the corona core committee assembly held on Wednesday,  collector Bhandari Swagat Ranveerchand directed the District Industrial Centre supervisor to examine with the Department of Industries if any CSR fund is in the stores the generator and the UPS.

The covid lab in CUK can also be dealing with the issue of waste disposal. The Indian Medical Association’s IMAGE was contracted to choose the biowaste from the lab. “Going by the waste generated at the lab, they used to come at least four days a week. But now they come only once. The waste gets piled up in a faculty’s room,” mentioned the official.