Dec. 23—Delhi's Indira Gandhi International airport has set up a dedicated corridor for the movement of passengers arriving from the United Kingdom, after the government made it mandatory for such travellers to undergo an RT-PCR test for Covid-19 at the airport.
To ensure that the passengers from the United Kingdom are segregated from others on their arrival, their immigration clearance, baggage collection and customs clearance has been expedited and is being completed under supervision. Only five, of the total 470 passengers from the United Kingdom who arrived at Delhi airport since Monday, have so far tested positive and have been sent to hospitals. The rest have been advised seven days home quarantine, officials said.
India, on Monday, had suspended all flights to and from the United Kingdom ( UK) between December 23 and December 31 in order to stop the arrival of a new strain of Sars-Cov-2 that spreads faster. The government mandated all passengers who arrive from the UK on Monday and Tuesday, to take an RT-PCR test for Covid-19 at the airport, with only those who test negative being allowed to go home.
While two incoming flights landed at the Delhi airport on Monday night and early Tuesday morning , two more arrived late on Tuesday. The flights that arrived on Monday night and Tuesday morning were Air India's AI 162 and British Airways BA143, respectively, both from Heathrow airport in London.
Doctor Gauri Agarwal, founder and director of Genestrings diagnostics, that is conducting the RT-PCR tests at the Delhi airport, confirmed that only five passengers had tested positive. "The testing was completed around 5pm on Tuesday. None of the rest tested positive or showed any symptoms. They were all advised a seven-day home quarantine," she said.
Agarwal added that it took them 4-5 hours to get the reports. "Meanwhile, the passengers were sent to the lounge. A guitarist was there to entertain them and they were served with chocolates and refreshments. Genestrings Diagnostics has already been conducting RT-PCR tests of passengers but for Tuesday we had to double our staff strength. There are two more flights scheduled for Tuesday — one carrying 240 passengers while another has 274 passengers on board," she added.
The passengers were charged a total of Rs 3,400, that included Rs 800, the standard charge for an RT-PCR test in Delhi. The rest was lounge charges.
DEDICATED CORRIDOR AT THE AIRPORT
Airport officials said that as soon as the passengers entered the terminal after crossing the aerobridge, they were divided into batches of 20-25 and were escorted through a dedicated corridor by the Central Industrial Security Force personnel in PPE kits.
Sachin Badshah, deputy inspector general ( IGI Airport), CISF, said a separate corridor has been set up for the passengers arriving from the UK so that there could be adequate social distancing with other passengers at the airport. "The dedicated corridor helps expedite the immigration clearance, baggage collection and customs clearance for these passenger who are then escorted by our men to their designated waiting area where they wait for their turn to be tested," Badhsah said.
The designated waiting area is a lounge that has been set up specially to accommodate these passengers inside Terminal 3 by airport operator DIAL ( Delhi International Airport Ltd). An official from the airport said seating arrangements have been made keeping social distancing in mind with basic facilities of washroom, drinking water available for the passengers.
From here the passengers are moved to the testing facility built in the multi-level car parking building right in front of T3.
Outside the terminal, the Delhi police teams were also present. Deputy commissioner of police (IGIA) Rajeev Ranjan said police personnel ensure that no passenger manages to leave the airport premises without getting tested.
"We ensured adequate deployment to make sure that everyone is mandatorily tested as per the government's order and that there are no law and order problems," Ranjan said.
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