RT-PCR test prices in Karnataka airports for international passengers announced

Karnataka has made RT-PCR tests mandatory on arrival for all international passengers, and these prices apply across all airports in the state including Bengaluru.
Passengers standing at the Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru
Passengers standing at the Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru
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With an RT-PCR test mandatory on arrival for all international passengers, the Karnataka government on Tuesday, December 7, announced the price caps for both conventional as well as express tests, and capped their prices. These tests are approved by the ICMR.

According to the order released by the state government, the conventional RT-PCR test is priced at Rs 500. However, as the results of conventional RT-PCR tests take about 5-6 hours or longer, there are also express tests available. The Abbott ID test priced at Rs 3,000, Thermo-Fisher Accula is priced at Rs 1,500, Tata MD3 Gene fast/Tata MDXF test is priced at Rs 1,200 and the Cepheid Gene Expert test is priced at Rs 2,750. Results of express tests are typically given within an hour

The order stated that the variety of tests offered to passengers is to ensure faster testing. “As the strategy of rigorous screening and testing is mandated for international arrivals in view of COVID-19 Omicron variant, availability of a variety of tests ensures faster testing of passengers and better compliance of COVID-19 Appropriate Behavior in holding areas at airports,” the order stated. The order further stated that the airport authorities have to ensure that the tests are available in the airports at stipulated rates.

Due to the Omicron variant, the Union government had asked states and Union Territories to ensure RT-PCR tests are taken for travelers coming from 'at-risk' countries on the first day of arrival and retesting on the eighth day. Under the new norms, RT-PCR tests are mandatory for passengers arriving from 'at-risk' countries and they will be allowed to leave the airport only after the test results come. Karnataka made RT-PCR tests mandatory for all international passengers

Karnataka logged 299 fresh COVID-19 cases and six deaths on Tuesday, taking the total number of infections to 29,98,699 and the toll to 38,243.

The day also saw 260 discharges, taking the total number of recoveries in the state so far to 29,53,327, a health department bulletin said.

Bengaluru Urban continued to head the list of cases (215), as the city saw 97 discharges and three deaths. The total number of active cases in the state is now 7,100. While the positivity rate for the day stood at 0.36%, the Case Fatality Rate (CFR) was 2.00%.

Out of six deaths reported on Tuesday, three were from Bengaluru Urban and one each from Dakshina Kannada, Dharwad and Mysuru.

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