AIRPORTS WILL NOW SCREEN FLYERS FROM 2 MORE COUNTRIES

NEW DELHI: Aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said on Monday all passengers flying in from Italy and Iran will have to undergo thermal screening at airports, an announcement that came hours after the government confirmed two more cases of the coronavirus in India.

The regulator was already screening passengers from China, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, Japan, Nepal and Indonesia. The virus, which has killed at least 3,000 people globally, has spread to 58 countries. It is believed to have originated from a seafood market in China’s Wuhan.

“In order to prevent the spread of COVID-19 disease in India, it has been decided to expand the universal screening of all passengers arriving in flights from Italy and Iran,” a DGCA circular said.

The DGCA circular also said that universal screening of all passengers coming in flights from all these countries shall be ensured immediately once they step out of the specific locations at all the airports and airlines should get the self-declaration form filled by the passengers as per the instructions of the government.

Two fresh cases of the novel coronavirus – one each in Delhi and Hyderabad – were confirmed by the Union health ministry on Monday, taking the number of people who have tested positive in the country to five. The person from Delhi recently travelled to Italy, while the patient from Hyderabad has a travel history from Dubai, the health and family welfare ministry said.

The outbreak has expanded alarmingly since it began in December last year in China, where at least 80,000 people have now been infected and 2,915 have died. Outside China, infections have been confirmed in 53 countries, taking the total number of infected to at least 88,900.

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