14-day quarantine for flyers from UAE, other GCC countries to India

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Dubai - India has also banned the entry of passengers from member countries of the EU, the EFTA, Turkey and the UK.

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Dhanusha Gokulan

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Published: Mon 16 Mar 2020, 5:11 PM

Last updated: Tue 17 Mar 2020, 10:37 AM

The Indian Ministry of Health is extending its compulsory quarantine for a minimum of 14 days for all passengers coming in from and transiting through UAE, Qatar, Oman, and Kuwait starting March 18 at the port of first departure. This will come into effect from 1200 GMT (4pm UAE time) on March 18, 2020 at the port of first departure.
The Consul General of India to Dubai, Vipul, confirmed reports of the new travel restrictions from the UAE to India, and said, "All passengers from the UAE, including transit passengers, going to India will have to undergo mandatory quarantine for a minimum of 14 days. I expect there could be a rush of travellers until the quarantine is imposed on March 18."
The government of India has issued a strict set of travel restrictions to prevent the spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus from high-risk areas.

According to a series of tweets from the ministry following the seventh detailed deliberation on the Covid-19 coronavirus management, India has also banned the entry of passengers from member countries of the European Union, the European Free Trade Association, Turkey and the United Kingdom with effect from March 18.

The tweets said, "No airline shall board a passenger from these nations to India with effect from 1200 GMT on March 18. The airline shall enforce this at the port of initial departure."

Both these instructions are temporary measures and shall be in force till March 31, and will be reviewed subsequently. The ministry announced four new cases of coronavirus, one each from Odisha, Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, and Kerala have been confirmed since the last update. "There are now a total of 114 confirmed cases in India as of today, including 10 discharged, three cured and two reported deaths," said officials at the meeting.

"Contact tracing activity of these positive cases has led to identification of more than 5,200 contacts, who are kept under surveillance," the tweets said.


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