The first Air India flight evacuating 324 Indian nationals from coronavirus-hit Wuhan, China landed in Delhi on Saturday. This came on a day when the death toll due to infection shot up to 259, with confirmed cases surging to 11,791.
The plane, carrying 211 students, 110 working professionals and three minors, reached Delhi around 7.30 a.m., a senior Health official said.
Even though only asymptomatic Indian have been flown back, they will be housed in the quarantine facility in Haryana’s Manesar set up by the Indian Army.
“Indian Embassy had informed the Indians that they will be tested before the flight and undergo 14 day quarantine after reaching India. They had been informed that only asymptomatic persons would be brought back. A second Air India flight left on Saturday afternoon to pick up other Indians in China,” said the Health official.
“The incoming Indian passengers will be quarantined for 14 days at the two Quarantine Centres set-up at Manesar [managed by Armed Forces Medical Services] and Chawla Camp [managed by ITBP]. All proposed male passengers [approx. 280] are proposed to be sent to Manesar Camp and families/females [approx. 90] can be housed in the ITBP camp,” the Health Ministry had said.
Screening of passengers
Meanwhile, passengers arriving from Thailand and Singapore will also be screened at airports, in addition to those coming from China and Hong Kong, for possible exposure to novel coronavirus (nCoV), the Union Health Ministry said.
The decision was taken at a high-level review meeting held by Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba here on the preparedness to deal with the virus amid mounting global concern.
“Apart from passengers coming from China and Hong Kong, passengers coming on flights from Singapore and Thailand shall also be universally screened at the airports, henceforth,” noted a statement issued by the Health Ministry.
A total of 52,332 passengers from 326 flights have been screened as of Saturday and a total of 97 symptomatic travellers picked up and referred to the isolation facilities. 98 samples have been tested of which 97 have been found to be negative.
The Union Health Secretary also held a video-conference to review the process of screening passengers from different countries.
The condition of the medical student, who has been admitted to the isolation ward of Thrissur Government Medical College Hospital in Kerala, is satisfactory, according to Kerala Health Minister K.K. Shylaja.
