ATTN India travellers: New Covid guidelines at airports take effect today

Amid rising Coronavirus cases in China and few other parts of the world, the Government of India has enforced new rules for the passengers arriving on international flights. The new guidelines come into effect from Saturday morning.

While the union health ministry had mandated random testing of all flyers coming in starting Wednesday, new rules will require all passengers to be thermal screened, and some to be tested on arrival. 

Here are the new guidelines:

• Starting 10am on Saturday, 24 December, all passengers coming into India will have to undergo a mandatory thermal screening. 
• Anyone found symptomatic will be isolated and taken to a designated medical facility.
• Further, 2% of all passengers on each incoming international flight will be subjected to a COVID-19 test on arrival. These passengers will be selected at random. Passengers need not wait for the test results to arrive—they will be allowed to leave after giving the sample. 

The communication has been sent to the aviation regulator DGCA and copies have been marked to all scheduled commercial airlines, airport operators as well as to states and Union Territories (UTs), among others.

After the random testing, the passenger has to furnish the correct contact and address details to the Airport Health Officers (APHOs)/airport authorities.