Amidst the spike of Covid-19 cases in India making it world’s worst-hit country after the US, reports are emerging of some unscrupulous lab technicians selling false Covid-19 test results.
There have been several reports in the Indian media where people have bought ‘fudged’ reports to ‘dodge’ quarantine rules or travel freely without taking an RT-PCR test that is mandatory for entry in some states.
Surprisingly, the sale of false Covid test reports is not confined only to a negative report. The positive test report was also in demand as it entitles the person ‘to get few days off from work and to remain home’, or for ‘exemption to sit in exams’.
In absence of any accessible government database or mechanism to track or check the veracity of RT-PCR test results live, this malpractice seems to be increasing.
Cost of a fake Covid report from a pathological lab there, for example, may start from a mere ₹1500 (NZ $30).
Several such fake certificate rackets have been exposed recently in the Indian states of Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat and Maharashtra.
India’s leading news magazine, India Today terms this racket of false test reports a ‘bigger pandemic’ as it is worsening the dire situation.
In Nov/Dec 2020, a special investigation team of India Today went undercover after a tip-off and exposed how ‘some unscrupulous lab employees were engaged in malpractices and minting money by selling false Covid-19 test results’.
In this covert operation, the team visited some state-run hospital facilities in India’s largest state, Uttar Pradesh and exposed the role of some corrupt technicians involved in issuing fake test reports for money.
The reporter was able to obtain desired Covid test reports after paying between ₹3000-4000 (NZ$ 60-80) to laboratory technicians in three separate approved labs.
In all reported cases, no actual sample was taken or actual lab examination done, but the required test report was generated for money, and posted online on government portal also.
This racket of fake test reports appears to be rampant in Mumbai because of strict requirements of entry from other areas.
A most recent case of labs doctoring Covid test results, came to light on 15 April with the arrest of a lab technician of SRL Diagnostic Centre by the Mumbai police. He was allegedly found carrying 156 Covid-19 test reports on his mobile phone, which the police suspect to be fake.
According to an Indian Express report, the arrested technician allegedly created false negative reports for ₹1500 (NZ$ 20).
Another Mumbai lab technician was previously arrested on 9 April for allegedly issuing forged negative test reports to at least 37 people.
On 13 April, the police booked 32 passengers and six others, including the owner of a private travel agency, for allegedly making forged negative test reports for passengers to travel to Gujarat.
In the state of Gujarat, two government-approved testing laboratories in Surat city, Teja’s laboratory and Hemjyot laboratory were shut down recently for similar offences. In Rajkot (Gujarat), two health department persons were arrested last month for a similar offence.
The full extent of this ‘pandemic’ of false test reports, however, is not known and maybe restricted to a few isolated cases or states only.
With the recent unprecedented spike of Covid-19 infections, people in India are desperate to leave for safer areas – within the country or return to their countries of residence.
This desperation possibly has given the unscrupulous an opportunity to make a quick buck, forgetting in the process they unknowingly could be contributing to the spread of the virus.
There is currently a two-week temporary suspension of travel to New Zealand from India after a spate of positive cases amongst those returning from that country.
NZ’s Director-General of Health, Dr Ashley Bloomfield had recently told reporters the government was looking into the pre-departure testing regime in general, but not specifically of any one country.
However, there are no reports of fake certificates having been used to travel overseas from India, or to enter New Zealand.
– from NewsViews
