Italy-Amritsar Flyers Claim False COVID Results, Probe Ordered Against Lab

173 passengers coming from Italy tested COVID positive, claim incorrect results in Punjab on Friday.

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The Quint

Health officials ordered a probe against a private laboratory amidst claims of false COVID results by the passengers coming from Italy to Punjab, reported NDTV quoting news agency PTI.

According to the report, health officials said that the services of Delhi-based private lab have also been replaced by the local lab after the allegations.

173 passengers on a Rome-Amritsar charter flight tested COVID positive on Friday, 7 January 2021. A day earlier on Thursday, 125 flyers tested positive after deboarding the Milan, Italy-Amritsar flight.

The passengers alleged that they tested negative hours before boarding the flight from Italy and that their test results in India were incorrect. Many complained against the testing practice of the lab and even created ruckus over it in the airport.

Officials said that some of the passengers tested negative in the re-test at Shri Guru Ramdas International Airport.

"A probe has been initiated by the Airports Authority of India against the alleged errant working of the lab. The services of the existing Delhi-based lab has been suspended and new local lab has resumed its working at the airport."

Dr. Amarjit Singh Assistant Civil Surgeon

He said that the services of Delhi-based COVID testing lab were roped in from 15 December last year.

This was a second consecutive incident of people testing COVID positive in a large scale. Earlier on Thursday 6 January, 125 people tested positive after arriving at Amritsar airport from Milan, Italy.

Following the Union Health Ministry's rule of compulsory COVID testing for the people coming from 'at risk' countries the tests were being done at the airport. All European countries have been put under this category by the ministry.

(With inputs from NDTV and PTI)