Amid Omicron scare, six passengers were reported to be Covid-19 positive from the total 11 international flights that landed here on the first day of operation of the central Guidelines for International Travellers as public health response measures for control and management of the new reported variant of the virus.
It has been designated as a Variant of Concern (VOC) by the World Health Organization (WHO).
“Total of 11 international flights landed at various airports of the country except Lucknow, from midnight to 4 pm today, from ‘at risk’ countries. These carried 3,476 passengers,” said a statement from the Ministry.
All 3,476 passengers were administered RT-PCR Tests, wherein only 6 passengers were found Covid-19 positive.
The samples of the Covid-19 positive passengers have been sent to INSACOG labs for Whole Genomic Sequencing. INSACOG Labs network, a multi-laboratory, multi-agency, pan-India network has set up by the Government to monitor genomic variations in the SARS-CoV-2 for genome sequencing to determine the strain of the virus.
States will then undertake contact tracing of these positive individuals and follow up for 14 days.
“The Government continues to keep track of the evolving situation, and supports States/UTs in the fight against the pandemic through “whole of Government” approach,” said the statement from the Ministry.