A claim is doing the rounds on social media, according to which, as many as 17 companies have agreed to give Coronavirus testing kits at Rs 500 each. Even then, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given the contract ‘to a Gujarati company, which is selling the kit at Rs 4,500’.
The claim in Hindi read: “कोरोना किट बनाकर 17 कंपनियां 500 रुपए में देने को तैयार थीं। मगर पीएम ने ठेका एक गुजराती कंपनी को दिला दिया जो कोरोना किट 4500 रुपए मैं बेच रही है। जय हो मोदी|”
(Translation: “17 companies prepared the Corona kits and offered to sell it for Rs 500. But PM gave the contract to a Gujarati company which is selling Corona kit for Rs 4500.)
A screenshot of one such claim was shared by Congress leader and former Member of Parliament from Delhi, Udit Raj.
ये सोशल मीडिया पर देखा जा रहा है । क्या सच्चाई है , कहना मुश्किल है। pic.twitter.com/g8A3XtsI6Z
— Dr. Udit Raj (@Dr_Uditraj) April 26, 2020
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FACT CHECK
NewsMobile fact-checked the above claim and found it to be FAKE.
ICMR replying to Raj, clarified that the above claim is false.
“This is Fake News. Price range approved by ICMR is ₹740-1150 for RT-PCR and ₹528-795 for Rapid Test. No test has been procured at ₹4500,” ICMR said.
This is Fake News. Price range approved by ICMR is ₹740-1150 for RT-PCR and ₹528-795 for Rapid Test. No test has been procured at ₹4500. Any Indian company wanting to supply at lower rates is welcome to contact ICMR or Ms Anu Nagar, JS Health Research(011-23736222).
— ICMR (@ICMRDELHI) April 27, 2020
On digging further, the Press Information Bureau (PIB) in a tweet explicitly clarified that this information is untrue and claims of Coronavirus test kits being bought at an inflated price by ICMR is FAKE.
Claim: Facebook post claims #Coronavirus test kits have been bought at inflated price by @ICMRDELHI#PIBFactCheck: Price range approved by #ICMR is ₹740 to 1150 for RT-PCR and ₹528 to 795 for Rapid Test kit. ICMR is open to buying kits from any company offering cheaper rates. pic.twitter.com/aNsrEbPuXv
— PIB Fact Check (@PIBFactCheck) April 27, 2020
Hence, the above information proves that the claim in circulation is untrue.
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