The government has laid out the guidelines for random screening of international passengers amid an alarming surge in Covid cases in China and some other countries.
Back to random testing
According to the letter sent by Union health secretary Rajesh Bhushan, a subsection of 2 per cent of the total passengers in a flight will undergo random post-arrival testing at airports in India.
Those selected will be identified by the concerned airlines for testing and preferably be from different countries.
These passengers will submit their samples and be allowed to leave the airport.
Procedure for positive samples
If found positive, a copy of the report shall be shared with the integrated disease surveillance programme by the testing laboratory.
This will then be shared with the respective state or union territory for follow-up action.
Samples from the positive travelers should be sent for genome testing at the dedicated INSACOG laboratory network, the letter stated.
High-level meeting
The letter follows a high-level meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to review the country’s preparedness to tackle any situation that may arise as a fallout from China’s current crisis.
The prime minister has acknowledged that Covid-19 is not over yet and has cautioned against complacency and advised strict vigil.
He directed the officials to strengthen the ongoing surveillance measures, especially at the international airports.
States taking action
Several states including Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Punjab, Maharashtra and Rajasthan have announced precautionary measures including ramped up testing, genome sequencing and mask advisories.
Random testing of international arriving passengers will start from Saturday, 24 Dec.
The Ministry of Civil Aviation has directed airport operators to create necessary infrastructure to facilitate the random testing of international arriving passengers at their respective airports.
After testing is done, the passenger has to provide the correct contact and address details to the Airport Health Officers (APHOs)/airport authorities.
Mumbai airport
Mumbai airport has made a provision for six registration counters and three sampling booths for the testing process.
The airport said that it has also ensured that messages on preventive measures and details of the latest advisories are placed strategically across the terminal and CSMIA’s digital platforms.
The RT-PCR testing facility is located in the international arrival concourse in the pre-immigration area, after the health screening counters.
Thermal scanning for all
It will be available around the clock and free of cost.
Meanwhile, thermal screening will be done for all passengers by the health officials present at the point of entry.
Those found to be symptomatic will be immediately isolated and taken to a designated medical facility.
