Mumbai: BMC directs chemists to keep tabs on people buying self-test COVID-19 kits

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation has planned to issue directions to chemists to keep a record of people who purchase self-test Covid kits from the medical stores to see whether they have been infected with Covid or not . The step was taken after it noticed that people don't register their name on the website of self-test Covid kit and hide their reports from the municipal corporation.

"As per the procedure, a person who buys a self covid kit from a chemist will have to scan the code given on the wrapper of the kit and will have to register his status report on the website or app of the company. The company then informs the corporation about positive patients. However, it has been observed that many people don't upload their test results. So, we have decided to tell the manufacturer, distributor and the chemist to keep a record or note mentioning the name and number of the buyer and inform the BMC," Said Suresh Kakani, Additional Commissioner of BMC.

" We got information that as of now three lakh citizens have bought the self test kits and out of that 98,000 people have uploaded their information on the website of the company. among them 3,149 people have been found positive," said Kakani

Since December many people have been suffering from cough, cold and fever. Furthermore, the number of Covid cases has also increased since December. To avoid a mandatory quarantine period if the Covid tests come positive, people are taking help of these self test kits. “The price of a self test kit is around Rs 250. In a week around 10 to 15 kits are being sold. People also purchase it because most of the offices require a test report from their employee who even falls ill due to viral infection" said Altaf Khan, a chemist of Prabhadevi.