The National Human Rights Commission has urged the government to expand polymerase chain reaction tests for Covid-19 and expedite contact tracing.

Issuing a statement, the national rights watchdog has said despite rapid diagnostic tests being carried out in more numbers, their results have been doubtful, hence the government should expedite PCR tests.

The commission statement follows a sudden surge in the number of positive cases after RDT tests initially showed them negative.

“Even experiences from other countries suggest that RDT tests are not reliable, so the commission requests the government to expedite PCR tests along with a due focus on contact tracing,” reads the statement.
According to the Ministry of Health and Population, RDT tests have been conducted on 38,089 people while the number of tests via PCR method stands at 9,408.

“Though social distancing is a key to contain the spread of the disease, the lockdown has not been followed fully,” said the commission.

It has also drawn the attention of the government to the huge outflow of the people from the Capital to other parts of the country without maintaining minimum precautions. It has appealed to everyone to abide by the lockdown and social distancing so that the spread of the disease could be controlled.

The human rights watchdog has also asked the government to arrange ventilators, isolation wards, personal protective equipment and essential drugs as the situation could worsen in the days to come.

“The commission also urges the federal, province and local governments to respect and protect human rights while enforcing the lockdown,” reads the statement.