India, June 2 -- The Delhi high court has asked the Centre for an update on the status of guidelines for laboratories on the collection and transportation of Covid-19 samples amid a sudden resurgence of the outbreak.

Justice Anish Dayal, while hearing a contempt plea over the Centre's delay in formulating such guidelines, said that the situation cannot be taken lightly given the recent spike in cases.

"Considering that the next Covid-19 pandemic is far from over and in fact, active among the community today as per news reports, the vacuum, if any, of steps taken post the meeting of 30 May 2023 is a serious issue," the judge said in an order dated May 28, made available later.

The court noted that although the Centre had initiated actio...