How fake COVID-19 test reports scam during Haridwar Kumbh was unravelled?

Team Udayavani, Jun 16, 2021, 9:36 AM IST

The Health Ministry has said that a probe has been initiated to look into the allegations that more than 1 lakh Covid test reports of devotees visiting the Haridwar Kumbh were fake.

The issue came to light after a Punjab-based insurance agent started to investigate the SMS he received stating that his samples have tested negative for COVID-19.

Vipan Mittal, the insurance agent, however, had not given any samples for testing.

Mittal sent an email to the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) stating that he received test reports without undergoing a test and when he did not receive a response for it, he submitted an RTI application.

The ICMR told him that his mobile phone number was registered for a COVID-19 test at Haridwar.

Mittal had never been there.

The ICMR further looked into the case and forwarded Mittal’s complaint to Uttarakhand’s health department where they found out that a Haryana-based agency, which was one of the eight contracted to conduct the tests, had allegedly forged lakhs of test reports and registered them to fake phone numbers and addresses.

All other agencies contracted for COVID-19 testing are now being probed.

Mittal, however, says his concern has not ended and he is determined to find out how his personal data was stolen and used in the scam.