New Delhi: With Covid-19 infection rising rapidly, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) on Friday issued additional preventive measures requiring all international passengers coming to the country to home quarantine for seven days.
“All travellers (including those 2 percent selected for random testing on arrival and were found negative) will undergo home quarantine for seven days and shall undertake RT-PCR test on the 8th day of arrival in India,” the Ministry said in a revised standard operating procedure (SOP).
In case the report is negative, they would still need to monitor their health for one week. But in case the report is positive, their samples would be further sent for genomic testing.
The Ministry said that travellers from specified countries at risk would be tested for the virus at the airport.
“Such travellers will be required to wait for their test results at the arrival airport before leaving or taking a connecting flight,” the Ministry said.
If tested negative they will follow home quarantine for seven days and shall undertake RT-PCR test on the 8th day of arrival in India.
However, if such travellers are tested positive, their samples should be further sent for genomic testing at designated laboratories, said the notification.
They would be managed at isolation facility and treated as per laid down standard protocol including contact tracing.
“The contacts of such positive case should be kept under home quarantine monitored strictly by the concerned State Government as per laid down protocol,” the MoHFW said.
