Airline crew on official duty will be exempt from quarantine standards (representation)
Bengaluru:
The Karnataka government has exempted ministers and officers of central and state government from quarantine requirements upon arrival in the state from other locations.
The airline crew on official service and anyone holding a negative COVID-19 test certificate would also not have to undergo the mandatory seven-day institutional quarantine stipulated in the standard operating procedure (SOP) issued Friday for interstate passengers from states with a high number of cases of coronavirus.
These exemptions were authorized in a POS addendum issued on Saturday by the Ministry of Family Health and Welfare and released to the public on Monday.
“Ministers of the Union government or of state governments or officers on official missions who travel through states will be exempt from quarantine requirements, as has been done for health professionals and others,” added the addendum.
Anyone who obtains a negative COVID test certificate (from an ICMR accredited laboratory) who has no more than two days from the date of travel will also be exempt from the quarantine requirement of the establishment, he said. “Such a person will be invited to go to quarantine at home.”
Crew of airlines on official service will be exempt from quarantine requirements as has been done for certain categories, he added.
The addendum was released hours after Union Minister of Chemicals and Fertilizers DV Sadanada Gowda courted controversy after it was not quarantined when it flew from Delhi .
He defended his action, claiming that he fell into the exempt category as a manager of pharmaceuticals, an essential sector.
State government SOP said returnees from six COVID-19 heavy states – Maharashtra, Gujarat, Delhi, Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh – arriving by road, rail and air will be maintained in institutional quarantine for seven days.
After the returnees tested negative for the disease in the pool tests, they will be quarantined at home for another seven days, he said.
Returnees from other low-prevalence states will have to undergo 14 days of home quarantine.
In special cases such as businessmen coming for urgent work, the quarantine period will be lifted if they provide a report from a laboratory approved by the ICMR showing that they have been tested negative for COVID-19 and do not must have no more than two days from the date of travel.
(With the exception of the title, this story was not edited by GalacticGaming staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
