Eye on variant, India updates norms for international passengers

NEW DELHI: All international passengers, except those under five years of age, flying into India from Covid at-risk countries must undergo RT-PCR test on arrival, starting from 12.01am (IST) of December 1, 2021. This will include those transiting from these places too. Those testing negative must home quarantine for seven days and then re-test on the eighth day.

Those who are testing positive will be admitted to seperate isolation facility and their sample sent for genomic testing and would be discharged if found not infected with the Omicron variant. Those found to be infected with this new variant will be kept in “strict isolation” and treated till they test negative.

Union health ministry on Sunday issued a new protocol for international arrivals in the wake of a new variant found in southern Africa, Hong Kong, and some other countries to prevent its spread here.

This adds to the existing norms like a negative report from a RT-PCR test done within 72 hours of flying into India and filing a self-declaration form. They must also add details of their travel in the last 14 days from the time of arrival.

To be sure, the government will keep updating the list of at-risk countries as the situation evolves.

Five per cent of the passengers flying in from not-at-risk countries will also be tested on arrival on a random basis. "The cost of testing of such passengers would be borne by the aviation ministry," the order says. Their samples will also be sent for genomic testing and they will be treated as per “standard protocol”.
Children unde five years of age continue to be exempt from both pre- and post-arrival test if they are asymptomatic. “Contacts” of positive cases from at-risk countries — their co-passengers seated in the same row and three rows in front and behind their row and identified cabin crew — will be kept under institutional or home quarantine, under strict monitoring of the state government concerned.

As of November 26, the health ministry's list of at-risk countries include: countries in Europe including the UK, South Africa, Brazil, Bangladesh, Botswana, China, Mauritius, New Zealand, Zimbabwe, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Israel.