Haridwar administration orders probe over allegations of 1 lakh fake Covid-19 test reports issued during Kumbh Mela*
Days after the preliminary inquiry by the Uttarakhand health department, a thorough investigation has now found that at least 1 lakh fake Covid-19 tests were issued during the Kumbh Mela, several media reports suggest.
According to the reports, the detailed inquiry found several deviations in the test reports, such as a single phone number was used to register about 50 people. The investigation also discovered that one antigen test kit was shown to have tested 700 Covid-19 samples.
The Haridwar district administration had earlier ordered a probe into allegations that fake Covid-19 reports were issued by private laboratories appointed by the government of Uttarakhand to conduct tests during the time of Kumbh Mela.
The Kumbh Mela, one of the world’s largest religious gatherings, was held in the state from April 1 to 30. The Kumbh area covered several places in Haridwar, Dehradun and Tehri districts.
Haridwar District Magistrate C Ravishankar told PTI that a committee led by Chief Development Officer Saurabh Gaharwar had been organized to investigate the allegations and submit a report within 15 days.
He added that payment to all labs assigned the responsibility of conducting tests, RT-PCR and rapid antigen during the Kumbh Mela has been withheld for now due to the ongoing investigation.
The Haridwar administration ordered a detailed probe after preliminary investigations revealed that several private labs enrolled by the district health department issued fake Covid-19 test reports in the name of random people based on their identity cards and phone numbers.
The Chief Controlling Officer of Covid Cases, Abhishek Tripathi, recommended a detailed investigation and asked to conduct preliminary investigations into the alleged irregularities.
Twenty-two private labs had been hired to conduct testing during the festival by the district health department.
