New strain of coronavirus: India suspends UK flights till Dec 31

This development calls for enhanced epidemiological surveillance, enhanced containment and other measures to effectively tackle the challenge.

Hyderabad: In the wake of a new strain of the SARS-CoV-2 being detected in the United Kingdom, the Civil Aviation Ministry has temporarily suspended all flights originating from the UK to India and vice versa from midnight on December 22 till December 31.

In a circular on Monday, the ministry also said passengers coming from the UK in all international flights (flights in transit) would be subjected to mandatory RT PCR tests on arrival at the airports concerned.

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The circular also said those who were found positive on arrival were to be sent for institutional quarantine/isolation set up by the State/UT governments. Those found negative in the tests would be advised to isolate themselves at home for seven days and to be medically monitored by the State/UTs concerned.

State and UT governments have been asked to set up separate help desks at the airports to facilitate this, while adequate arrangements for patients waiting for RT PCR test results too were to be made at the airport.

The circular from the Ministry noted that a distinct phylogenetic cluster of SARS-CoV-2 was spreading and growing rapidly in the UK and that it was reported that the variant had an unusually large number of genetic changes particularly in the spike protein. This development calls for enhanced epidemiological surveillance, enhanced containment and other measures to effectively tackle the challenge.

With India seeing a sustained decline in the number of fresh Covid-19 cases for over two and a half months now, any interjection of a SARS-CoV-2 variant virus through passengers with air travel history could pose critical risks for pandemic management in India, the Ministry said.

As a measure of abundant precaution, passengers arriving from UK in all transit flights (flights that have taken off or flights which are reaching India before 22nd Dec at 23.59 hrs) should be subject to mandatory RT-PCR test on arrival at the airports concerned.

— MoCA_GoI (@MoCA_GoI) December 21, 2020

This suspension to start w.e.f. 23.59 hours, 22nd December 2020. Consequently flights from India to UK shall stand temporarily suspended during above said period.

— MoCA_GoI (@MoCA_GoI) December 21, 2020

Considering the prevailing situation in UK. Govt. of India has decided that all flights originating from UK to India to be suspended till 31st December 2020 (23.59 hours).

— MoCA_GoI (@MoCA_GoI) December 21, 2020

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