Jalna (Maha), Dec 2 (PTI) Jalna district in Maharashtra topped Marathwada region by conducting 22,671 RT-PCR tests in November, a health official said on Wednesday.

RT-PCR is considered a gold standard test for detection of coronavirus.

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Dr Suryakant Hayatnagarkar, who heads the testing laboratory at the Jalna civil hospital, said the second highest number of RT-PCR tests (20,978) in the region were conducted by the Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) in Aurangabad.

He said about 3,000 teachers were tested during the month of November on the directive of the state Education department.

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The government laboratory in Jalna, the home district of state health minister Rajesh Tope, was set up at COVID hospital in July this year.

"A total of 60,000 RT-PCR tests have been conducted so far at the laboratory since it was opened," Dr Hayatnagarkar said.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)