No direct flights from Mumbai but passengers still reaching Chennai sparking COVID-19 fears
CHENNAI: There are no direct flights from Chennai to Mumbai or Ahmedabad for the last one month due to the rise in COVID-19 cases in these cities but people from here are still able to reach airports in Tamil Nadu by flying via a third city sparking alarm over the spread of the virus.
Till now, a total of 217 passengers flying to Chennai and other parts of Tamil Nadu have tested positive in the last one month.
Sushmita Sharma, who got stranded in Mumbai, desperately wanted to fly to Chennai to join her parents. Unaware that there are no direct flights to Chennai, she booked a ticket four times and each time it got cancelled.
Ajay Sharma, former Indian Navy officer and father of Sushmita, said that for every transaction his daughter has to pay Rs 400 extra. "Why are the airlines keeping the online counters open when they know there are no direct flights to Chennai," says Sharma, who has even complained to the aviation ministry.
Desperate, he asked his daughter to book a ticket to Delhi and from there take the next flight to Chennai. "The usual three hour journey took 18 hours for Sushmita to reach Chennai and rather than any strict testing regimen, she underwent the usual home quarantine," says Sharma.
"We just received a call from the Chennai Corporation asking about her whereabouts and later they did not disturb us," says Sharma.
Interestingly, Sharma is questioning the decision to clamp down on direct flights to Mumbai and Gujarat when passengers from these parts are able to reach Chennai. "Why cause inconvenience to passengers when people from these places are still able to reach Chennai airport," he says.
When The New Indian Express contacted revenue department officials, they said it is impossible to test every passenger. "We are undertaking thermal screening and suspected cases are taken for institutional quarantine," he says.
It is learnt that screening of passengers has not been that strict and all they have to undergo is a thermal scan following which they are allowed to travel after they are stamped with a quarantine seal. Many times, even senior citizens are taking the aerial route despite standard operating procedures urging them not to travel, said a CISF official patrolling the airport.