THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: With a large number of antigen test kits giving wrong results in the last two weeks, the authorities have decided to return nearly one lakh antigen testing kits from the state.

The Kerala Medical Service Corporation (KMSCL) had purchased more than one lakh kits from Haryana-based Alpine Biomedicals at the rate of Rs 45 per kit. A few kits were sent to different districts. It was soon discovered that more than 30 percent of the tests returned false-positive results. When the ones who tested positive during the antigen tests were subjected to PCR tests, the results were negative. This was reported by Kerala Kaumudi.

After receiving complaints from various districts, the authorities decided to withdraw the kit. In the first phase, a kit called SD Biosensor was used. Due to the high cost of this kit, kits belonging to Alpine and Oscar were purchased. Recently, several people have raised suspicion about the effectiveness of Oscar kit as well.