India claims to be self-reliant in Covid-19 rapid tests by May

India will be self-reliant in producing indigenous rapid tests and diagnostic kits for Covid-19 by May-end, making it possible to conduct one lakh tests a day, said the country's Health Minister Harsh Vardhan.

"We will achieve self-reliance and this will make it possible to meet the target of conducting one lakh tests per day by the end of next month," he said last night, while videoconferencing on the various initiatives undertaken by the Department of Biotechnology and its autonomous institutes and public sector undertakings to tackle the Covid-19 crisis especially the progress made in indigenous development of rapid test and RT-PCR diagnostic kits and vaccines.

Vardhan exhorted the scientists working on developing new vaccines, new drugs and medical equipment to speed up their work, reports our New Delhi correspondent.

"Out of at least half a dozen candidates supported for vaccines, four are in an advanced stage and regulatory platform at one place has been constituted for speedy clearances," he said on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, the Indian health ministry has issued fresh guidelines on home isolation for very mild/pre-symptomatic Covid-19 patients under which patients who have a requisite facility at their residence for self-isolation will have the option for home isolation.

These guidelines are in addition to guidelines on appropriate management of suspect/confirmed case of Covid-19 issued by the ministry on April 7.