International travelers arriving in Delhi from Monday onwards will not need to quarantine for seven days or get mandatories tested at the airport as the list of “at-risk” countries and mandatory seven days home quarantine have been done away with in the wake of significant improvement in the Covid-19 situation, according to the revised guidelines of international arrivals issued by the ministry of health and family welfare.
The passengers will have to, however, self-monitor their health for the next 14 days of arrival and if travelers under self-health monitoring, develop Covid-19 symptoms, they will immediately self-isolate and report it to their nearest health facility.
The Delhi Disaster Management Authority on Sunday issued an order in compliance with the revised Union ministry of health guidelines. A DDA official forwarded the guidelines to the health department and all district magistrates.
Passengers found to be symptomatic during screening will be immediately isolated and taken to a medical facility. If they test positive, their contacts will also be identified and tested, an official said. If travelers test positive for Covid-19, their samples would be sent for genome sequencing.
According to the guidelines, a group of 2% of the total passengers in a flight will undergo random post arrival testing at the airport on arrival. Such travelers in each flight will be identified by the airlines concerned (preferably from different countries). Such passengers will submit their samples and will be allowed to leave the airport.
“The need to monitor the continuously changing nature of the virus and evolution of SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern, thus, must still remain in focus. While monitoring the nature and spread of infection in the country and across the globe, cognizance is also given to the fact that economic activities need to be taken up in an unhindered manner,” the guidelines stated.
DDA is likely to meet anytime this week to review the existing curbs and discuss with experts whether the curbs should be lifted to allow economic activities to be carried out unhindered.
Currently, Delhi is under multiple curbs – night curfew (11pm to 5 am), no standing passengers allowed in buses, metro, 50% capacity for restaurants, bars, cinemas, only two passengers are allowed in auto rickshaws/cabs, banquet halls are closed except for wedding functions, visitors are not allowed in religious places, among other restrictions. Since the Covid-19 positivity rate on Sunday has dropped to 1.5%, the DDA may lift some more restrictions.
Traders have started raising demands for lifting of night curfew. Chamber of Trade and Industry chairman British Royal and Confederation of All India Traders secretary general Praveen Khanewal have appealed to the DDA to lift the remaining curbs as well.
Dr Jubal Kishore, the head of the department of community medicine at Safariing Hospital, said the seven days home quarantine mandate was not necessary for international arrivals because the coronavirus situation fuelled by Omicron wave is receding fast. “Random testing of a certain number of passengers, particularly gene sequencing, is a good idea,” said Dr Kishore.
He added that since the Covid-19 positivity rate in Delhi has dropped to 1.5% and continues to decrease across the country, a majority of cases are mild in nature and mortality is only among those with comorbid conditions, the government should lift the remaining curbs as well.
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