In light of rising in coronavirus cases in various countries, including China, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya examined the screening and Covid testing facility at the Delhi Indira Gandhi International Airport on Monday.
In a tweet on Monday, Mandaviya said, "Reviewed Air Suvidha system and RT-PCR testing facilities for international passengers at the IGI Airport, New Delhi." He also visited the Airport Health Organization (APHO) office and interacted with the officials there.
The government has made random Covid testing necessary for 2 per cent of all passengers arriving on overseas flights, regardless of point of departure. Furthermore, beginning January 1, travellers travelling in India from China, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, and Thailand would be asked to present Covid negative results, according to an official statement released by the Press Information Bureau (PIB).
The test must be performed within 72 hours before departing for India, and the negative RT-PCR test report must be posted to the Air Suvidha portal prior to departure, the statement said.
This will also apply to passengers travelling through the six countries before arriving at any Indian airport, according to Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan in a letter to his Civil Aviation Ministry counterpart Rajiv Bansal on Monday.
"As a result, the Ministry of Civil Aviation's Air Suvidha Portal has to be made operational for passengers on all international flights exiting from these countries, with a provision to allow international travellers arriving in India to submit negative RT-PCR test reports as well as a self-declaration form on this portal," he wrote in the letter.
"This arrangement is in effect as of 10 am on Sunday, January 1, 2023," the letter stated.
Mandaviya emphasised the necessity of being vigilant against new COVID-19 strains, citing the increasing number of COVID-19 cases in nations such as China, Japan, South Korea, Thailand, and the United States, the statement said.
He stated that "passengers arriving from 6 high-risk countries are now mandatorily required to upload their negative RT-PCR test reports in the Air Suvidha portal within 72 hours of undertaking their journey to India while travellers from other countries are being randomly tested at the airports upon their arrival in India".
"“This is being done to ensure that genome sequencing of any positive case is promptly done to understand the strength and behaviour of any new variants," he added.
He urged people to follow Covid guidelines and get vaccinated, and said the Centre was taking all necessary steps to guarantee adequate preparation and management of the impending COVID-19 scenario, the statement added.
In response to an increase in coronavirus cases in several nations, the government has issued an alert, strengthened Covid standards, and advised states and union territories to be prepared for any scenario, the statement said.