Mobile handset makers demand rapid Covid testing for factory workers, employees

New Delhi: Mobile manufacturers body India Cellular and Mobile Association (ICEA) has urged the government to mandate rapid antibody/antigen testing of Covid-19 for all personnel of the mobile and electronics industry at a regulated price and the cost to be borne by the central government.

“These tests can give the results within an hour and at a much lower cost than an RT-PCR test, making it acceptable and adaptable for mass testing,” ICEA chairman Pankaj Mohindroo said in a letter dated June 18 to Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare Dr. Harsh Vardhan.

The RT-PCR test can be used as a follow up, if required as confirmatory test where infection is suspected, it said in its suggestion.