New Delhi:
Air passengers with “green” status on the Aarogya Setu app do not need to be quarantined, Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said online in a public chat to clarify the standards governing the resumption of domestic flights from Monday.
Mr. Puri made a similar remark at a press briefing on Thursday, during which he revealed details of the revised flight operations, including airfares and the seven route categories.
“I don’t understand the need to quarantine green passengers on the Aarogya Setu app,” Puri said in his virtual meeting, adding that the government will try to restart “a good percentage of flights.” international “, which are currently banned. , before August.
“I am hopeful that before August or September we will try to start a good percentage of international civil aviation operations, if not to finish international operations … depending on the situation,” he added.
Mr. Puri responded to concerns that air passengers traveling during the COVID-19 lockdown may not need to be quarantined or isolated upon arrival at their destination.
Following his statement, no fewer than six states, including Kerala, Karnataka and Assam, insisted that those arriving on domestic flights should be quarantined.
This morning, Karnataka said that incoming passengers from six most infected states will be subject to institutional quarantine of seven days and seven days of home isolation. Exceptions will be made for the elderly, the terminally ill, children and pregnant women.
On Friday, Tamil Nadu urged the center to rethink the reopening of air travel, citing an increase in cases of coronavirus in Chennai, the state capital, and ineffective public transport, which will annoy passengers making the shuttle between the airport and the city – a distance of about 10 kilometers.
Puri said on Thursday that unnecessary “agitation” was underway regarding the quarantine of domestic passengers.
He pointed out that, in accordance with the revised SOPs for air travel during lockdowns, those who showed “red” on the Aarogya Setu app, which he had promoted as “an excellent contact finder”, would not even be not allowed to enter the airport, leave alone on a plane.
“I don’t know why we make so many fuss over the quarantine issue. Bhai, these are domestic trips. The same laws will apply here that apply when you travel by train or bus. . Positive people will not be allowed to board the flights, “he said.
Air operations, domestic and international, were halted in March after a national blockade was ordered to stop the spread of the COVID-19 virus. On Wednesday, Mr. Puri said that they would be restarted in a “calibrated” manner.
Resumption of domestic flights comes as the country experiences a worrying increase in new cases of COVID-19 – nearly 25,000 have been recorded in the past four days, including 6,654 reported in the past 24 hours, data say. from the government this morning.
The total number of cases in India exceeded 1.25 lakh, with 3,720 deaths reported.
The railways have already decided to gradually restart services; it operates trains for migrants since May 1, as well as 15 special passenger trains departing from New Delhi.
As of June 1, 200 regular passenger trains will also be put into service. Passengers will also have to show “green” on the Aarogya Setu app before traveling, and will have to spend 14 days in isolation upon arrival.
