Planning to fly during COVID-19 days? You might want to know these guidelines first

​However, those who come under economically poor category would be exempted upon verification by the respective district collectors.
Indian citizens evacuated as part of the Vande Bharat Mission arrive at the Anna International Airport in Chennai. (Photo | Special Arrangement)
Indian citizens evacuated as part of the Vande Bharat Mission arrive at the Anna International Airport in Chennai. (Photo | Special Arrangement)

MADURAI: All passengers of chartered flights, whether intrastate or interstate, and foreign returnees have to pay for testing and institutional quarantine (hotels), said a recent guidelines on Standard Operating Procedures for chartered flights issued under Disaster Management Act, 2005.

However, those who come under economically poor category would be exempted upon verification by the respective district collectors.

While the guidelines mandate one-week quarantine for all the passengers and testing upon arrival, the foreign returnees will be subjected to another test on day seven of quarantine, before being ordered to go under home quarantine.

“The guidelines also give exemption from quarantine for those intrastate and interstate travellers who are on a business trip and who return to their boarding point in 48 hours,” said the communication, dated June 1, issued by Chief Secretary K Shanmugam to the District Collectors.

The communication also said that as COVID - 19 cases are on the rise in Chennai, all Chennai returnees, except those who provide a COVID negative certificate issued by Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR)-approved laboratory before two days of boarding the flight, will be subjected to testing. 

Sources said that RT-PCR test is also mandatory for other-state returnees, in particular those who come from Maharashtra, Delhi and Gujarat.  This apart, all the people should have taken the e-passes provided by the State government before boarding the aircraft.

Sources say

All the people should have taken the e-passes provided by the State government before boarding the aircraft. The passengers will also be thermally scanned before boarding and those found with COVID - 19 symptoms will not be permitted to fly. All the passengers will be branded with ‘quarantine’ seal upon arrival at the airport

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