Phone Calls & Surprise Visits: Mumbai’s International Arrivals Will Be Strictly Monitored During Quarantine

by Tania Tarafdar
Phone Calls & Surprise Visits: Mumbai’s International Arrivals Will Be Strictly Monitored During Quarantine

The BMC has set up new rules to ensure proper monitoring of passengers coming from at-risk countries. Apart from writing to the housing societies about quarantine norms, the BMC is going to follow up on phone calls and also make physical visits. Any traveller breaking the rules would be booked under the Disaster Management Act, 2005, and Epidemic Act, 1897. With the new variant of Covid-19 Omicron in the picture, the Union Health Ministry revised its guidelines for international arrivals in India. The Centre has made it mandatory for passengers to submit 14 days of travel details and upload negative RT-PCR test results on Air Suvidha portal before the journey. Travellers from ‘countries at-risk will need to take the Covid-19 test upon arrival at the airport. If the test is negative, they should home quarantine for 7 days.

India had relaxed guidelines for international travellers. Fully-vaccinated travellers from 99 countries have now been exempted from mandatory quarantine on arrival in India. This includes passengers from the United States, Great Britain, Germany, Israel, France, Spain, Australia, Belgium, Bangladesh, Finland, Croatia, Hungary, Russia, the Philippines, Qatar, Singapore, Sri Lanka, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Turkey and Nepal.

India Revised The Guidelines For International Travellers

India has revised the existing guidelines for international travellers arriving in India. The revised guidelines state that all international arrivals irrespective of their vaccination status must mandatorily show a negative RT-PCR report to board an international flight to India. This decision was taken by the government keeping in mind the vaccination coverage across the globe and the changing nature of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Also read: Philippines Allows Facility-Based Quarantine Free Travel For Indians; Moves India To Green List

RT-PCR Test Report Mandatory Even For Fully Vaccinated International Travellers In Maharashtra

The Uddhav Thackeray-led Maharashtra government has tightened rules for international passengers flying into Mumbai and other airports of the state. The Maharashtra government has announced that the rules for a COVID-19 negative report before arriving in India are in line with the central government mandate. Even if a passenger has taken two doses of the COVID-19 vaccine, the negative report of RT-PCR no older than 72 hours is compulsory.

Also read: COVID-19 Test Reports On CoWIN Platform To Help With International Travel ; Here’s How

Meanwhile, the COVID-19 situation in the state is well under control government is leaving no stone unturned to ensure strict COVID-19 measures in the state.  Amid the Omicron scare, the Assam government has issued fresh guidelines, including a mandatory RT-PCR test for international passengers. The government also revised the guidelines and said that 7-day home quarantine would be made mandatory for all international arrivals. All international passengers will have to undergo a compulsory RT-PCR test for COVID-19 upon arrival.