The new Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) will come into effect from 23.59 hours on February 22 till further orders
The Union health ministry had issued a set of revised guidelines for international arrivals amid the spread of mutant variants of coronavirus in many countries. There are fresh guidelines for all international travellers coming/transiting through flights originating from the United Kingdom, Europe and the Middle East. The new Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) will come into effect from 23.59 hours on February 22 till further orders.
“Attention Travellers! To reduce the risk of importation of mutant strains of SARS-CoV-2, SOPs for International Passengers arriving in India have been updated. Make sure you take all the necessary precautions and follow all the guidelines while travelling,” the Ministry of Civil Aviation said in a tweet.
Guidelines for international arrivals effective 22 February
1) All international travellers will have to submit self-declaration (SDF) for Covid on the online Air Suvidha portal before the scheduled travel.
2) They will also have to upload a negative COVID-19 RT-PCR report on the online portal www.newdelhiairport.in.
3) The test should have been conducted within 72 hours prior to the journey and each passenger will also have to submit a declaration with respect to the authenticity of the report, as per the guidelines.
4) At the time of boarding the flight, only asymptomatic travellers will be allowed to board after the thermal screening.
5) International travellers arriving through seaports/land ports will also have to undergo the same protocol, except that facility for online registration is not available for such passengers currently, as per the civil aviation ministry guidelines.
6) Airlines should identify the international travellers arriving from/transiting through the United Kingdom, Brazil and South Africa (during the past 14 days) and segregate them in-flight.
7) All the travellers arriving from/transiting through flights originating in the United Kingdom, Europe or the Middle East shall be mandatorily subjected to self-paid confirmatory molecular tests on arrival at the Indian airports concerned (port of entry).
8) All travellers from Europe and the Middle East shall give samples at the designated area and exit the airport. If the test report is negative, they will be advised to self-monitor their health for 14 days. If the test report is positive, they will undergo treatment as per standard health protocol.
Scheduled international passenger flights continue to remain suspended in India since March 23 amid the coronavirus pandemic. Overseas flights to and from India are currently operated as per air bubble agreements with various countries. Domestic flights resumed in India from May 25 after a gap of two months due to the coronavirus-triggered lockdown.
