Omicron In India: If you are going to travel to these cities, then know the new travel rules and guidelines

The Central Government informed that so far two cases of Omicron variant of corona virus have been reported in India. Both the cases reported are from Karnataka, in which the age of the patients are 66 and 46 years and they are both men. Worldwide, around 29 countries have reported 373 cases of the Omicron variant so far.

In view of this, the central government has made changes in its guidelines for international travelers coming to India from December 1. As per the new norms, passengers coming from 'at risk' countries will have to undergo RT-PCR test on arrival in India. If they test positive, they will be treated according to clinical management protocols, and the sample will be sent to the relevant laboratories for genomic sequencing.

If the test comes back negative, the passengers will be sent to home quarantine for seven days and will need to undergo RT-PCR test on the eighth day. If passengers are arriving from other countries, random samples will be taken from 2% of passengers upon arrival at the airport. These rules will also apply to passengers coming by road and sea. Children under the age of five are exempted from testing before and after arrival. If they are showing symptoms, they will be tested and treated as per SOP.

Guidelines by State Governments:

Maharashtra

Maharashtra on Thursday amended its air travel rules, making seven days of institutional quarantine mandatory for passengers. This rule is currently in place for only three countries - South Africa, Botswana and Zimbabwe.

• On arrival at the international airport, they will have to undergo RT-PCR test immediately and on the seventh day to undergo a second test.
• If the passenger is found to be Kovid positive in any test, then they will be immediately admitted to the hospital.
•  If the Kovid test comes negative on the seventh day, then they will have to stay in home quarantine for seven more days.
•  All incoming passengers will have to give details of the countries they have visited in the last 15 days.
•  The RT-PCR report is not older than 72 hours.

 Karnataka

 The state government has said that all international travelers arriving in the state will have to compulsorily undergo RT-PCR test and undergo a seven-day home quarantine.

•  Those who come negative in the test will have to quarantine at home for 7 days.
• Those who are showing symptoms, but they have come negative in the test, they will have to get tested at home on the 5th day.
• Those who are asymptomatic will have a test on the 7th day. If they come positive, they will be immediately admitted to the hospital and treated.

Jammu and Kashmir

All international passengers arriving at Srinagar airport in Jammu and Kashmir will be subjected to RT-PCR test, after which those coming negative will have to undergo a 7-day home quarantine. Passengers will be re-tested on the 8th day or whenever they feel symptoms during the quarantine. If the report of RT-PCR test comes negative, then they will monitor themselves for a week and strictly quarantine at home.

Uttarakhand

The Uttarakhand government has announced that people arriving in the state will have to undergo a mandatory test. If found positive or symptomatic, they will be quarantined for 14 days.

•  All samples of Kovid-19 will be sent to Government Medical College, Dehradun for genome sequencing.

• The officials will also conduct random tests at the state borders.
• District officials will test all healthcare and front line workers as per the new guidelines of ICMR.