Delhi has begun stamping the forearms of people, who have been advised home quarantine in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak .
In a crackdown on people who have been advised home quarantine but are found travelling/mingling in public, authorities have begun stamping the hands of people with an indelible ink similar to the one used to mark voters.
Most of them have a travel history.
In Delhi, people arriving at the Indira Gandhi International Airport from abroad are being checked for COVID-19, and if directed to remain at home, are being stamped ‘Home Quarantined’. It also states “Proud to protect Delhiites. Home quarantined,” and has a date showing when the person was stamped.
“We started stamping people, who are directed at the airport to be home quarantined, from yesterday [Wednesday] evening,” a Delhi government official told The Hindu .
People coming from abroad have to undergo two different medical checks and they are stamped at the second screening point at the airport, run by the Delhi government. The first test is done by the airport authorities for visible symptoms, where, after an initial thermal screening, symptomatic passengers are isolated and moved to designated hospitals. Others move to the second screening point, where they are either home quarantined or sent to a quarantine facility run by the government, depending on risk factors.
Uttar Pradesh, the most populous State, also today began stamping people who need to be home quarantined at airports, according to Principal Secretary (Health) Amit Mohan Prasad. "Proud to help my countrymen stay free from Coronavirus. Home quarantined," the stamp in Hindi roughly translates.
One of the first States to swing into action has been Maharashtra, where four people who were travelling from Mumbai to Surat were deboarded at Palghar from on board the Garib Rath train from Bandra to New Delhi when co-passengers raised an alarm and the Train Ticket Examiners (TTE) noticed their stamps. All four had arrived from Germany.
The episode prompted railway authorities to decide not to allow passengers with ‘Home Quarantined’ stamping on hand to travel in trains, and TTEs have been authorised to de-board them.
On Monday, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation began stamping the hands of those advised to undergo home quarantine, stating, “Proud to protect Mumbaikars. Home quarantined.” In Mumbai, however, the date on the stamp shows until which the person is supposed to be quarantined.
