Nearly two weeks after the BMC’s genome sequencing lab became operational at Kasturba hospital, it is yet to carry out any tests. While the expensive genetic-level test requires samples meeting certain criteria, the civic body isn’t getting them due to falling numbers in the city. Amid fears of another Covid wave, it has now decided to tweak its own rules to start the process, which can detect virulent variants of Covid. The genome sequencing lab became fully functional on August 4. It can analyse 384 samples simultaneously and produce results within four days. Each test will cost Rs 10,000- Rs 12,000.

A genome sequencing machine