Govt issues revised guidelines for international passenger

Mangalore Today News Network

New Delhi, Oct 20, 2021: Travellers fully vaccinated and coming from a country with which India has reciprocal arrangements for mutual acceptance of WHO-approved COVID-19 vaccines shall be allowed to leave the airport and will not need to undergo home quarantine and testing from October 25, according to the revised guidelines for international arrivals released on Wednesday.

 

They will, however, have to produce a negative Covid-19 RT-PCR report.

If flyers are partially vaccinated or not vaccinated, they will need to undertake measures that include submission of samples for the post-arrival Covid-19 test at the point of arrival. They will then be allowed to leave the airport and remain in home quarantine for seven days. They will then have to get tested again on the eighth day of arrival to India and if negative, they will have to self-monitor their health for the next seven days.

These guidelines for international arrivals supersede all guidelines issued on the subject on and after February 17, 2021, the Union health ministry said.

"The global trajectory of Covid-19 pandemic continues to decline with certain regional variations. The need to monitor the continuously changing nature of the virus and the evolution of SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern (VOCs) must remain in focus. The existing guidelines (issued on February 17, 2021, with subsequent addendums) for international arrivals to India have been formulated by taking a risk-based approach.

"In view of increasing vaccination coverage across the globe and the changing nature of the pandemic, the existing guidelines for international arrivals in India have been reviewed," the ministry said.

The new document provides protocols to be complied with by international travellers. It also lists rules to be followed by airlines, points of entry (airports, seaports and land borders) for risk profiling of passengers.

SOP TO KICK IN FROM OCTOBER 25

This Standard Operating Procedure shall be valid from October 25 till further orders. Based on the risk assessment, this document shall be reviewed from time to time, the ministry said.

ARRANGEMENTS FOR MUTUAL RECOGNITION OF VACCINES

According to the ministry, India has signed agreements for mutual recognition of nationally or WHO recognised Covid-19 vaccines with 11 countries - the UK, France, Germany, Nepal, Belarus, Lebanon, Armenia, Ukraine, Belgium, Hungary and Serbia.

Travellers coming from these countries who are fully vaccinated, and 15 days have elapsed since completion of the Covid-19 vaccination schedule, shall be allowed to leave the airport and should self-monitor their health for 14 days post-arrival, according to the revised guidelines.

While planning for travel, all travellers should submit a self-declaration form on the online Air Suvidha portal before the scheduled trip and upload a negative Covid-19 RT-PCR report. This test should have been conducted within 72 hours before undertaking the journey, according to the guidelines.

Each passenger shall also submit a declaration concerning the authenticity of the report and will be liable for criminal prosecution if found otherwise.

RULES FOR TRAVELLERS FROM OTHER COUNTRIES

If a traveller is coming from a country, excluding those covered under these categories (coming from a country with which India has reciprocal arrangements for mutual acceptance of WHO approved COVID-19 vaccines), s/he would be required to undergo measures, such as submission of sample for post-arrival COVID-19 test at the point of arrival. After that, they will be allowed to leave the airport for a seven-day home quarantine, re-test on the eighth day of arrival in India and, if negative, self-monitoring of their health for the next seven days, irrespective of their COVID-19 vaccination status.

"Travellers from countries excluding those countries at risk will be allowed to leave the airport and should self-monitor their health for 14 days post-arrival. This applies to travellers from all countries, including countries with which reciprocal arrangements for mutual acceptance of WHO approved COVID-19 vaccines also exist," the guidelines stated.

The list of countries from where travellers would need to follow additional measures on arrival in India, including post-arrival testing (countries at-risk), are South Africa, Brazil, Bangladesh, Botswana, China, Mauritius, New Zealand, Zimbabwe, and countries in Europe including The UK.

GUIDELINES FOR SYMPTOMATIC PASSENGERS

If travellers under home quarantine develop signs and symptoms suggestive of COVID-19 or test positive for COVID-19 on re-testing, they will immediately self-isolate and report to their nearest health facility or call the national helpline number (1075) or state helpline number.

Thermal screening would be carried out in respect of all the passengers by the health officials present at the airport. The self-declaration form filled online shall be shown to the airport health staff.

The passengers found to be symptomatic during screening shall be immediately isolated and taken to a medical facility according to health protocol. If tested positive, their contacts shall be identified and managed under the laid down protocol.

Some countries have agreements with India on mutual recognition of vaccination certificates of nationally recognised or WHO recognised vaccines. Similarly, some countries currently do not have such an agreement with India, but they exempt Indian citizens fully vaccinated with nationally recognised or WHO-recognised vaccines.

Based on reciprocity, the travellers from all such countries which provide quarantine-free entry to Indians are allowed certain relaxation on arrival (Category A countries).

During travel, in-flight announcements about COVID-19, including precautionary measures to be followed, should be made at airports and on flights during transit. The in-flight crew shall ensure that Covid-appropriate behaviour is followed at all times and if any passenger reports symptoms of COVID-19 during flight, he/she shall be isolated as per protocol, the guidelines stated.

International travellers arriving through seaports/land ports will also have to undergo the same protocol, except in cases wherein the facility for online registration is not available for such passengers currently. Such travellers shall submit the self-declaration form to the concerned authorities of the Government of India at seaports/land ports on arrival.

Courtesy:India Today