Govt of India Issued New Guidelines For International Arrivals

The Govt of India, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has issued new guidelines for international arrivals in the wake of rising Coronavirus cases in Europe.

As per the new guidelines, travelers will not be required to undergo institutional or home quarantine if they can submit a negative RT-PCR report that has been conducted within 72 hours of their journey.

The new guidelines read, “They should also give an undertaking on the portal or otherwise to the Ministry of Civil Aviation, Govt. of India, through concerned airlines before they are allowed to undertake the journey that they would abide by the decision of the appropriate government authority to undergo facility/home quarantine/ self-monitoring of their health for 14 days, or as warranted.”

Here is the full guidelines for International arrivals issued by the Government of India, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare in supersession of guidelines issued on 2nd August 2020.

Guidelines For International Arrivals

Before Planning For Travel

• All travelers should submit a self-declaration form on the online portal (www.newdelhiairport.in) at least 72 hours before the scheduled travel or physically after arrival at the respective health counters.
  
• They should also give an undertaking on the portal or otherwise to the Ministry of Civil Aviation, Govt. of India, through concerned airlines before they are allowed to undertake the journey that they would abide by the decision of the appropriate government authority to undergo facility/home quarantine/ self-monitoring of their health for 14 days, or as warranted.
  
• Only for compelling reasons/ cases of human distress such as pregnancy, death in the family, serious illness, and parent(s) with children of the age of 10 years or below, home quarantine may be permitted for 14 days.
  
• If they wish to seek such exemption under para (iii) above, they shall apply to the online portal (www.newdelhiairport.in) at least 72 hours before boarding. The decision taken by the government as communicated on the online portal will be final.
  
• Travelers may also seek exemption from institutional quarantine by submitting a negative RT-PCR test report. This test should have been conducted within 72 hrs prior to undertaking the journey. The test report should be uploaded on the portal for consideration. Each passenger shall also submit a declaration with respect to the authenticity of the report and will be liable for criminal prosecution if found otherwise. The test report could also be produced upon arrival at the point of entry airport in India.
  
• International passengers arriving without an RT-PCR negative certificate and wishing to seek exemption from institutional quarantine may also avail of the facility available at the airports to undergo RT-PCR testing (where such provisions exist)
  
• All such passengers opting for exemption from institutional quarantine as in para (v) & (vi) shall undertake self-monitoring of their health and will be exempted from quarantine.
  
• International passengers arriving without RT-PCR negative certificate and not opting for RT PCR test at the airport (if the facility is available) /arriving at an airport where testing facility is not available will have to undergo mandatory 7 days’ institutional quarantine and 7 days’ home quarantine.

Before Boarding

• Dos and Don’ts shall be provided along with tickets to the travelers by the airlines/agencies concerned.
  
• All passengers shall be advised to download the Aarogya Setu app on their mobile devices.
  
• At the time of boarding the flight, only asymptomatic travelers will be allowed to board after the thermal screening.
  
• Suitable precautionary measures such as environmental sanitation and disinfection shall be ensured at the airports.
  
• During boarding all possible measures to ensure physical distancing is to be ensured.

During Travel

• Travelers who had not filled in the self-declaration form on the portal shall fill the same in duplicate in the flight and a copy of the same will be given to Health and Immigration officials present at the airport.
  
• Suitable announcement about COVID-19 including precautionary measures to be followed shall be made at airports and in flights and during transit.
  
• While on board the flight, required precautions such as wearing masks, environmental hygiene, respiratory hygiene, hand hygiene, etc. are to be observed by airline staff, crew, and all passengers.

On Arrival

• Deboarding should be done ensuring physical distancing.
  
• 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 (or a copy of the physical self-declaration form to be submitted) to the airport health staff.
  
• The passengers found to be symptomatic during screening shall be immediately isolated and taken to a medical facility as per health protocol.
  
• Post thermal screening, the passengers who have been exempted from institutional quarantine [para (iii) and (iv) above] (decision as indicated on the online portal in advance) will show the same to the respective State Counters on their cell phones/another mode before being allowed home quarantine for 14 days.
  
• Post thermal screening, the passengers who have RT-PCR negative certificates already with them [(para (v) and (vi)] shall be exempt from quarantine and shall be allowed to leave and undertake self-monitoring of their health for 14 days.
  
• All such passengers will also be provided the list of the national and state-level surveillance officers and the respective call center numbers, so as to inform state/national Call Centre in case they develop symptoms at any time during the quarantine or self-monitoring of their health.

• The remaining passengers shall be taken to suitable institutional quarantine facilities, to be arranged by the respective State/ UT Governments to undergo mandatory 7 days’ institutional quarantine and 7 days’ home quarantine

• These passengers shall be kept under institutional quarantine for a minimum period of 7 days.
  • They shall be tested as per ICMR protocol.
  • If they are assessed as asymptomatic/pre-symptomatic/ very mild cases, they will be allowed home isolation or isolated in the Covid Care Centre (both public & private facilities) as appropriate.
  • Those having mild/ moderate/ severe symptoms will be admitted to dedicated Covid Health facilities and managed accordingly.
  • If found negative, they shall be advised to self-monitor their health for additional 7 days.

International Passengers Arriving At Seaports/land Ports

• International Passengers arriving through seaports/land ports will also have to undergo the same protocol as above, except that facility for online registration is not available for such passengers currently.

• Such passengers shall submit the self-declaration form to the concerned authorities of Government of India at seaports/land ports on arrival.

Please Note: States can have any additional restrictions imposed with regards to quarantine and isolation as per their field assessment post arrival of passengers in the state concerned.

Also Read: Air India To Operate More Flights Between India And France From January: Details Here