Covid negative certificate required for passengers arriving from hotspots

New Delhi: India will begin mandating Covid-19 negative reports for travellers from nations reporting a spike in cases starting next week in an effort to further reduce the entry of any new variants of the virus into the nation.

“In the next one week, selected countries will be identified where the caseload is higher,” Union health minister Mansukh Mandaviya said in a TV interview on Friday. “People from there who come to India will have to upload their Covid-19 RTPCR reports,” he added. Countries reporting a surge in Covid-19 cases include China, the US, Japan, Korea, France, Greece and Italy, NIE reported.

The health ministry released new international arrivals travel policies on Thursday, which included 2% random Covid tests for travellers from hotspot nations. A day later, the ministry instructed states to increase testing, increase monitoring, and ensure that masks be used, especially in crowded places, including inside, in light of the forthcoming Christmas and New Year celebrations.

In a Covid review conference with state health ministers, Mandaviya requested that they make sure the hospital infrastructure is prepared for any situation. He gave them instructions to conduct practice drills in hospitals to gauge their readiness. “Need to collectively reinvigorate the system and remove any sense of complacency and fatigue,” he said and requested them to expedite testing.

First nasal Covid vaccination in India available for use

The Union Health Ministry has approved Bharat Biotech's first intranasal Covid vaccination for use as a booster dose, and it is now accessible on the CoWIN platform.