Airport sees footfall of 790 as 7 flights take off
MOHALI: After a gap of more than two months, the Chandigarh airport resumed its operations here on Monday with seven domestic flights arriving and departing with 790 passengers. The operations at the airport were shut on March 24 when a nationwide lockdown was announced by the Prime Minister in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Even though eight flights were scheduled for Monday, only seven took off as the Air India flight to Dharamsala was cancelled due to operational reasons. In total, 490 passengers arrived and 300 departed during the day.
With 142 fliers, the first Indigo flight from Mumbai arrived at the airport at 11.30am and left for Mumbai at 12.10pm with just 38 passengers.
The last Air India flight from Delhi arrived with 17 passengers at 8.30pm and departed with 10 at 9pm.
Three Indigo, two Air India and one each of Airasia and Vistara flights were operational on Monday, connecting Chandigarh to Mumbai, Delhi and Bengaluru.
SCREENING ON BOTH ARRIVAL, DEPARTURE
The passengers were screened on both arrival and departure. Even the Punjab health team randomly took swab samples of 133 persons who were natives of Punjab. Those who arrived were instructed to observe 14-day home quarantine.
On the low turnout of passengers for departure, airport’s chief executive officer (CEO) Ajay Bhardwaj said, “All the passengers stuck in metro cities are coming back to their native places. The situation will improve every day.”
Passengers from Mumbai landed at the airport in PPE coveralls, masks, gloves, and carrying sanitisers. The passengers wishing to depart were asked to come three hours before the flight. Deepak Kapoor, an artist working in Mumbai, who landed here, said, “We were screened three times at the Mumbai airport before boarding the plane, and again here at Chandigarh airport upon arrival. I was stuck in Mumbai for two months and I am happy to be back home. I am looking forward to being home-quarantined.”
Priya from Bathinda, who works in the private sector in Mumbai, said, “I was feeling homesick and wanted to come back home. ”
“The situation in Mumbai was not good and I felt that Himachal Pradesh is doing much better to control the Covid-19 situation. For the last two months, I was with my family in Mumbai. I am relieved to be back home,” said another flier, Mukesh Kumar, a native of Hamirpur.
PUNJAB RESIDENTS BEING TESTED
Dr Harmandeep Kaur Brar, nodal officer for Covid-19, Mohali, said, “Our teams are permanently stationed at the airport to screen all patients, while samples of only Punjab natives are being taken. After their registration, we are instructing them to undergo 14-day home quarantine. If any passenger shows symptoms, we will take them to the hospital for further testing.”
Airport CEO Ajay Bhardwaj said SOPS have been formulated for the safety of the passengers and airport staff, which include social distancing and stringent thermal screening. “Passengers are requested to adhere to all the instructions and carry printed boarding passes,” he added.
Residents of Chandigarh, Himachal Pradesh and Haryana will be tested by the district authorities concerned while they observe home-quarantine.