Test centers for COVID-19 in India: Where to go for coronavirus test if infected?

With World Health Organisation declaring coronavirus as pandemic and several countries on lockdown, government and authorities are trying their best to curb the spread of the disease. On Tuesday, the total number of cases across the globe reportedly crossed 182,000. According to Johns Hopkins University, over 7,100 worldwide death due to COVID-19 have been reported. After fresh cases were reported in India, the toll rose to 126 on Tuesday including 22 foreign nationals and three persons who died in Delhi, Karnataka and Maharashtra.

As of now, only government and government authorised diagnostic labs are testing for COVID-19.

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The apex laboratory for testing coronavirus is the National Institute of Virology (Pune) under ICMR. Now, with a rise in cases across the country, the total number of testing labs for coronavirus have also been increased to 62.

Here are the labs and hospitals which are testing for coronavirus.

DELHI

• All India Institute Medical Sciences (AIIMS)
• National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC)

MAHARASHTRA

• Indira Gandhi Government Medical College, Nagpur
• Kasturba Hospital for Infectious Diseases, Mumbai

RAJASTHAN

• Sawai Man Singh, Jaipur
• Dr. S.N Medical College, Jodhpur
• Jhalawar Medical College, Jhalawar
• SP Med. College, Bikaner
• RNT Medical College, Udaipur

TAMIL NADU

• King’s Institute of Preventive Medicine & Research, Chennai
• Government Medical College, Theni
• Tirunelveli Medical College, Tirunelveli
• Govt. Medical college, Thiruvaru

UTTAR PRADESH

• King’s George Medical University, Lucknow
• Institute of Medical Sciences, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi
• Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College, Aligarh

UTTARAKHAND

• Government Medical College, Haldwani

WEST BENGAL

• National Institute of Cholera and Enteric Diseases, Kolkata
• IPGMER, Kolkata

MADHYA PRADESH

• All India Institute Medical Sciences, Bhopal
• National Institute of Research in Tribal Health (NIRTH), Jabalpur

KERALA

• National Institute of Virology Field Unit
• Govt. Medical College, Thriuvananthapuram
• Govt. Medical College, Kozhikhode
• Govt. Medical College, Thrissur

KARNATAKA

• Bangalore Medical College & Research Institute, Bangalore
• National Institute of Virology Field Unit Bangalore
• Mysore Medical College & Research Institute, Mysore
• Hassan Inst. of Med. Sciences, Hassan
• Shimoga Inst. of Med. Sciences, Shivamogga

GUJARAT

• BJ Medical College, Ahmedabad
• M.P.Shah Government Medical College, Jamnagar

HARYANA

• BPS Govt Medical College, Sonipat
• Pt. B.D. Sharma Post Graduate Inst. of Med. Sciences, Rohtak

HIMACHAL PRADESH

• Indira Gandhi Medical College, Shimla, Himachal Pradesh
• Dr. Rajendra Prasad Govt. Med. College, Kangra, Tanda

JAMMU AND KASHMIR

• Sher-e- Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences, Srinagar
• Government Medical College, Jammu
• Government Medical College, Srinagar

JHARKHAND

• MGM Medical College, Jamshedpur

MEGHALAYA

• NEIGRI of Health and Medical Sciences, Shillong

MANIPUR

• J N Inst. of Med. Sciences Hospital, Imphal-East, Manipur
• Regional Institute of Medical Sciences, Imphal

ODISHA

• Regional Medical Research Center, Bhubaneswar

PUNJAB

• Government Medical College, Patiala
• Government Medical College, Amritsar

PUDUCHERRY

• Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education & Research, Puducherry

TELANGANA

• Gandhi Medical College, Secunderabad
• Osmania Medical College, Hyderabad

TRIPURA

• Government Medical College, Agartala

BIHAR

• Rajendra Memorial Research Institute of Medical Sciences, Patna

CHANDIGARH

• Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education & Research, Chandigarh

CHHATTISGARH

• All India Institute Medical Sciences, Raipur

ANDAMAN and NICOBAR ISLANDS

• Regional Medical Research Centre, Port Blair, Andaman and Nicobar

ANDHRA PRADESH

• Sri Venkateswara Institute of Medical Sciences, Tirupati
• Andhra Medical College, Visakhapatnam
• GMC, Anantapur
• Sidhartha Medical College, Vijayawada
• Rangaraya Medical College, Kakinada

ASSAM

• Gauhati Medical College, Guwahati
• Regional Medical Research Center, Dibrugarh
• Silchar Medical College, Silchar
• Jorhat Medical College, Jorhat

What happens during COVID-19 test?

You have to give one of the samples to the lab:

Swab Test: A special cotton swab to sample the inside of the throat or nose

Nasal Aspirate: A saline solution will be injected into your nose and then the sample will be removed with gentle suction.

Tracheal Aspirate: A thin, lighted tube called a bronchoscope goes into the lungs to collect the sample.

Sputum Test: Sputum, a variation of mucus from lungs that can be coughed out or sampled from the nose with a swab

Blood Test

When should you take a test for coronavirus?

You need testing if you have developed symptoms of infections or you have recently travelled to those parts of the world facing the outbreak. Also, if you have come in contact with someone who has recently travelled to the infected areas, then testing is necessary.

For more updates on coronavirus, please go to the website of Ministry of Health and Family Welfare of Government of India– https://www.mohfw.gov.in/

You can also get more information through the helpline number ( +91-11-23978046) or email (ncov2019@gmail.com)