The State government has increased the sample testing capacity for COVID-19 at its seven Viral Research Diagnostics Laboratories (VRDL) in the State. A Health Department release said the State has for the first time tested 2,010 samples in one day, on Monday. Earlier, the laboratories together could test only up to a thousand samples a day. Each laboratory located in Vijayawada, Anantapur, Guntur, Visakhapatnam, Tirupati, Kakinada and Kadapa is now equipped to test 300 to 400 samples a day, said Arja Srikanth, State Nodal Officer, Command Control Centre. The laboratories are now also using TruNat test kits meant for testing Tuberculosis following approval by the ICMR.

Source: The Hindu April 14, 2020 18:00 UTC