K’taka’s 7-Day Quarantine, Delhi’s ‘Letter & Spirit’ Rule, Maha’s to be Out Soon: Each State’s SOP as Flight Ops Set to Resume Tomorrow

The Union Health Ministry of Sunday issued travel guidelines for passengers taking the the air route to travel across states, a day before the country resumes its domestic flight services, barring a few states.

The Centre has decided to open up the skies for domestic passenger flights after a gap of two months and left the decision up to states to issue their own set of guidelines for their respective regions. This led to a confusion among the states as several of them were at odds with each other.

Many states like Maharashtra, West Bengal and Tamil Nadu opposed the decision of opening up their airports in view of rising Covid-19 cases, making it difficult for the airlines as well as the civil aviation ministry to resume services.

Vijayawada and Visakhapatnam airports will also not operate any domestic flights on Monday, officials said. Services on these airports will begin from Tuesday.

Echoing similar sentiments, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said that she will urge the Centre to postpone the resumption of domestic flight services at Kolkata and Bagdogra airports by a few days. The state government on Friday had said that domestic flights will not resume in the state from Monday, adding that the state machinery was still involved in the relief and restoration work in the aftermath of super cyclone Amphan.

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) spokesperson on Sunday announced a list of standard operating procedure (SOP) for the movement of Indians stranded abroad and those stranded in India who are desirous to travel abroad. The guidelines issued by the ministry said that all stranded persons will have to register themselves with Indian Missions and the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) will prepare a flight/ship wise database of the travellers.

However, the Ministry of Health along with a few other states issued Standard Operating Procedure (SOPs) and guidelines to be followed by passengers boarding the flights resuming on Monday.

Some of the important guidelines issued by the health ministry include mandatory face masks thermal screening at all entry and exit points for all travellers. However, downloading the Aarogya Setu app on mobile phones have been made optional by the ministry, which added that only asymptomatic passengers will be allowed to board the flight.

Delhi

The Delhi government’s guidelines for air travellers include no mandatory quarantine and asymptomatic flyers will be allowed to exit the airport with self monitor advice. Those with mild symptoms will be allowed to opt for either home isolation or government/private isolation facility, and will later be tested for Covid-19. Those found with moderate or severe symptoms of the coronavirus infections will be immediately admitted to the hospital.

Also, the Gautam Buddha Nagar police on Sunday said that people belonging to Noida and Greater Noida, travelling from other states, will not require a pass to cross the Delhi-Noida border. The passengers with a confirmed flight or train ticket will be allowed to cross the border by just showing their tickets to the police. All police personnel have been asked to ensure that those with a confirmed flight or train ticket should be permitted to travel to the airport or railway stations from the district.

Karnataka

The Karnataka government announced that all domestic air passengers would have to undergo a week-long institutional quarantine after arriving in the state from seven particular states, including Maharashtra, Delhi and Tamil Nadu, where Covid-19 cases are high. The state government also issued an order deleting domestic air travel from the list of prohibited activities with effect from Monday and allowed unhindered movement of passengers, airport staff and the crew. The airport administration also said that it would ensure taxis, to be used by passengers, were sanitised and all taxi drivers weere screened before every trip to eliminate the chances of an infection. Face mask will be mandatory for both passengers and drivers for taxi travel. In addition to it, staff who manage taxi services at airport, including Karnataka State Tourism Development Corporation (KSTDC), Ola, Uber and other car rental operators, will also be screened.

Uttar Pradesh

The Uttar Pradesh government announced that air travellers to the state will be sent on a 14-day home quarantine period unless their visit to the state is for less than a week or if they clear the coronavirus test. The state government said that passengers will have to follow the laid-down home quarantine protocol. However, they can get themselves tested on the sixth day from their arrival and end their quarantine if the results come out negative. All passengers travelling to UP have to register themselves on http://reg.upcovid.in and furnish details of themselves and family members travelling with them. All passengers will be advised to maintain social distancing, wear masks, wash hands and not gather under any circumstances.

Tamil Nadu

The Tamil Nadu government issued a draft copy of the standard operating procedure for receiving flights at the Chennai international airport. The draft suggested a 14-day home quarantine for all asymptomatic fliers, and institutional isolation for those without facilities for a home quarantine. All air passengers have to pre-register themselves on the state’s specific portal for travel and obtain and the e-pass before boarding a flight. Passengers would be sent a travel permit with a QR Code which needs to be produced upon arrival at the airport. After proper medical screening, those found without any symptoms need to home quarantine themselves for 14 days, while the regular operating procedure would apply for those displaying Covid-19 symptoms.

Punjab

The Punjab government ruled out that all passengers coming to the state have to go through a mandatory 14-day home quarantine. All passengers will be screened at the airport and those found symptomatic would be sent to institutional quarantine. Rapid testing teams would monitor the home quarantined people and the symptomatic passengers would be tested at hospitals and isolation centres.

Jammu and Kashmir

The Jammu and Kashmir administration on Saturday announced that all inbound passengers would have to undergo a compulsory Covid-19 test and administrative quarantine till the time their report is declared. If the test result comes out to be negative, the passengers would be released for home quarantine and if found positive, they would be sent to Covid-19 hospital for treatment.

Goa

In its Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for domestic air passengers, the Goa government said that all those arriving in Goa would have to undergo thermal screening upon their arrival. The passengers would also have to fill up a self declaration form. Those found symptomatic will be tested and sent to quarantine and those found asymptomatic would have to either give swab tests by spending Rs 2,000 and would have to stay in self isolation till the results come.

Kerala

The Kerala government ruled that all domestic travellers coming to the state have to register themselves on the ‘COVID19 Jagratha’ portal in order to obtain a travel permit. The travel permit issued to them would have to be shown at the airport before the boarding passes are issued. In case more one person is travelling on a single ticket, then the details of all persons should be entered by them on the portal. Mandatory medical screening will be held for all at the airport and if passengers are found to be symptomatic, they would be sent to a Covid-19 care centre. The SOP also stated that all passengers can use private/rented vehicles to travel to their homes. If a person comes to receive a passenger and comes in physical contact with the passenger, he/she will also have to undergo a 14-day home quarantine.

Assam

The government of Assam, in its standard operating procedure (SOP), made it mandatory for all air travellers coming to Assam to stay in quarantine for 14 days. However, the pilot and crew members and other engineering staff of a flight will not be quarantined.

Meghalaya

The Meghalaya government ordered that all passengers travelling to the state will be tested for Covid-19 and would have to undergo a 48-hour institutional quarantine.

Chhattisgarh

The Chhattisgarh government announced a mandatory 14-day institutional quarantine for all passengers upon arrival to the state. The details of every flight, with elaborate information about passengers, would have to be shared with state government.