RE: ? TATA Buyout ??28 Dec 2021 07:51
This is from a statement from Tatas chairman regarding testing .
The last paragraph is of importance with the future of diagnostics and clearly involves our kit and references scaling them up in the next quarter .
Testing
This pandemic will not be controlled unless we can test at scale.
Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) kits are a scarce commodity; reagents for testing have to be imported; and sample collection, processing and transport require specialised equipment and trained personnel. The Tata group has invested in technology to make testing easier, faster and cheaper.
We completed a research pilot, with the help of the country’s most eminent scientists, that proved the value of a ‘Minimum Testing Maximum Intelligence’ approach in the Kolar district of Karnataka. This process uncovered evidence of silent transmission among high-risk groups such as health workers and police personnel which enabled us to predict the spread of the disease at a time when Kolar had no confirmed positive Covid-19 cases.
A detailed standard operating procedure of the testing strategy for national scaling was handed over to public health agencies to incorporate in lockdown exit efforts. Currently, the Kolar model is being adopted and refined in Jamshedpur.
Our investments in two novel testing technologies will not only help the Covid-19 fight but also have a huge potential beyond, for instance, in the diagnosis of other infectious diseases and genetic diseases, as well as in the treatment for cancer. Both technologies are expected to be scaled up within the next quarter.