Dehradun, November 26: The Uttarakhand government on Thursday fixed the maximum permissible cost for COVID-19 Rapid Antigen Testing across laboratories in the state at Rs 679 and RT-PCT tests at Rs 850 in government hospitals and Rs 900 (inclusive of sample collection by private labs) by private laboratories.

Earlier, the cost of an RT-PCR test would range from Rs 1,400 to Rs 1,650.

The order was issued by Amit Negi, State Health Secretary, as a measure to control the spread of the infectious virus in the state. Other such measures include mandatory COVID-19 tests for all passengers arriving here from Delhi at the Jolly Grant Airport. Amit Shah Launches Mobile RT-PCR Lab in Delhi; COVID-19 Tests to be Free, Results in 6 to 8 Hours.

This comes amid the rise of COVID-19 infections in Delhi. A team from the health department has been deployed at the airport for testing passengers coming from Delhi, the state government said.

As many as 837 new COVID-19 cases and 99 recoveries were reported in Himachal Pradesh on Tuesday, the state health department informed.

The total number of positive cases in the state stands at 36,566 including 7,875 active cases, 28,080 recoveries and 575 deaths.