Odisha Becomes First State to Order 5 lakh Tata MD Omicron Detection Kits

Bhubaneswar: The Odisha Government has placed an order to procure 5 lakh Omicron detection kits from Tata Group’s medical arm, Tata Medical and Diagnostics Ltd. (Tata MD).

The State Government has placed the order through the Odisha State Medical Corporation Ltd (OSMCL), an independent procurement agency for the Department of Health and Family Welfare, according to reports.

With this, Odisha has become the first state in the country to order the Tata MD CHECK OmiSure RT- PCR tests, which have been developed in partnership with Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), made specifically for detection of the Omicron variant of COVID-19.

OmiSure is the only test that can specifically detect the Omicron variant at the point of testing. Odisha is the first state in the country that has decided to use TATA MD OmiSure for COVID testing and would provide all necessary support, said Girish Krishnamurthy, CEO and Managing Director, Tata Medical and Diagnostics.

Tata MD’s OmiSure is the only test approved by the ICMR for RT-PCR detection of the Omicron variant. It targets 3 gene with a single tube, fully multiplexed assay in a unique design that identifies simultaneous S-gene Target Failure (SGTF) and S-Gene Mutation Amplification (SGMA). Its confirmatory evaluation of RdRP target with internal controls leads to accurate diagnosis with significant reduction in the risk of false-positive reactions from contamination in control materials.

OmiSure uses the standard qPCR workflow, compatible with commonly used qPCR platforms with 4+ channels.