The second serological (sero) survey conducted in the national capital Delhi showed a 29.1% prevalence of antibodies in the population. This means that nearly a third of Delhi’s population has developed antibodies against the Coronavirus disease.
The findings of the survey were announced by Satyendar Jain, Delhi Health Minister on Thursday. “The second serological survey which was conducted between 1-7August shows that 29.1% of people have developed antibodies against COVID-19. A total of 15,000 samples were collected during the survey,” he said.
In the first survey conducted between June 27 and July 10, wherein 21,800 samples were tested, it was found that 23.48% of the population had developed antibodies.
In the new survey the highest prevalence, 33.2% was found in the southeast district with the least number of cases reported from the New Delhi area. The survey also showed that females have a higher rate of antibodies (32.2%) than males (28.3%).
“Scientists say that herd immunity is when up to 40% of the population has virus antibodies,” said Mr.Jain. it is expected that people who have antibodies would be protected for 6-8 months.
The serosurvey is conducted by the Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR), which is helpful in tracking the exposure of a population to disease and detecting the number of people who have developed immunoglobulin (IgG) antibodies, through random sampling.
