All international passengers arriving in India will have to undergo a mandatory seven-day quarantine at home and RT-PCR test on the eighth day, the Union Health Ministry said in a revised travel guideline on Friday amidst a Omicron-powered third wave of Covid-19 cases.
The new guideline will come into effect from January 11, superseding the existing one.
“All travelers (including those 2% who were selected for random testing on arrival and were found negative) will undergo home quarantine for 7 days and shall undertake RT-PCR test on the 8th day of arrival in India,” says the new guideline.
Travelers are required to upload the RT-PCR results on the Air Suvidha portal. If negative, they will further self-monitor their health for next 7 days.
If they are tested positive, their samples would be further sent for genomic testing at INSACOG laboratory network while they would be undergoing treatment.
Almost similar protocols are in place for people coming from “At Risk” countries with an additional condition of mandatory testing of every passenger on arrival. They will have to wait at the designated areas in the airport till the result comes.
If negative, they can leave the airport or board a connecting flight but would have to undergo RT-PCR test on the 8th day and upload the result on the portal. If negative, they will further self-monitor their health for another seven days.
Currently, every European nation and 18 others are in the category of “At Risk” countries. They are South Africa, Brazil, Botswana, China, Ghana, Mauritius, New Zealand, Zimbabwe, Tanzania, Hong Kong, Israel, Congo, Ethiopia, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Nigeria, Tunisia and Zambia.
The modification in the travel guideline comes at a time when a third wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, driven by the Omicron variant, has begun to rise at an unprecedented rate infecting more than 100,000 persons in 10 days.
The World Health Organisation on Thursday said while Omicron appeared to be less severe compared to Delta, especially in those vaccinated, it did not mean the variant should be categorised as ‘mild’.
“Just like previous variants; Omicron is hospitalising people and killing people. The tsunami of cases is so huge and quick, it is overwhelming health systems around the world,” said WHO director general Tedros Ghebreyesus.
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