Passengers bewail high cost

LUCKNOW: A number of passengers have complained about overcharging (₹3,500) for the Rapid RT-PCR test conducted by a private lab at the Lucknow airport. The passengers say that overcharging by the company comes as a violation of rules of the state government which has set a cap on every test related to Covid-19 detection.

It was in December 2020 that The Uttar Pradesh government had slashed the price of the RT-PCR test to detect the Coronavirus disease (Covid-19) by private labs at ₹700 and ₹900 if done at home.

The passengers have accused the private lab of overcharging and taking advantage of the situation during the pandemic times. Satish, a Dubai-bound passenger said, “When people are helping each other during the pandemic, this company along with the airport operator is taking advantage of UAE directives. It’s a compulsion for us to get the test done because the UAE government has made the Rapid RT-PCR test mandatory six hours before departure of flights. The rates could have been more reasonable.”

However, Lucknow airport officials of Adani Airports Limited said, “The test is priced reasonably. For the same test, people are paying more than this at other airports. However, the state government cap is for private hospitals and government hospitals in the state not at airports. Moreover, labs are doing rapid RT-PCR tests and giving reports in just a few hours.”

He said, “The company is doing all its tests perfectly and professionally. The rapid RT-PCR report is based on molecular diagnostic testing intended for the qualitative detection of nucleic acid for Sars-CoV-2 viral RNA as per directives of UAE. The UAE government has made the test mandatory for the residents of India, Nepal, Nigeria, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Uganda.

“For getting the RT-PCR test within six hours with accuracy most passengers are willing to pay ₹3,500.”