Delhi Airport to conduct random COVID-19 tests from today
What's the story
Passengers at the Delhi Airport - coming from states that are witnessing a surge in COVID-19 cases - will be randomly tested for the virus and those found positive will be quarantined, the government said.
Random coronavirus tests will also be done at railway stations and bus stations at a later stage.
Here are more details on this.
Quote
Delhi Airport tweeted the update today
"Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) shall conduct random COVID-19 testing of passengers coming from the states where the cases are increasing," read a statement tweeted on Wednesday by the Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL).
Details
Passengers who test positive will be quarantined for 10 days
After the collection of samples from passengers, they will be allowed to exit.
However, those passengers who test positive shall be "mandatorily quarantined" either at their place of stay or a hospital for 10 days, according to the Health Ministry's protocols.
In an earlier notice issued by the government, it had warned of strict action if people are found violating COVID-19 protocols.
Details
995 new cases took Delhi's tally to 6,60,611
Like several states across India, the National Capital is also witnessing a surge in coronavirus cases.
The city's COVID-19 tally rose to 6,60,611 after 995 new cases were reported on Tuesday, according to the data released by the Health Ministry.
In fact, some hospitals in Delhi have already started running out of beds amid the spike in infections.
Warning
'COVID-19 situation going from bad to worse'
Yesterday, the central government warned that the coronavirus situation in the country is going "from bad to worse."
"Trends show the virus is still very active and enter our defenses, just when we think we can control it, it sparks back (sic)," said Dr. VK Paul, the chairperson of the National Expert Committee on Vaccine Administration.
India
India reports over 1.21 crore coronavirus cases
India has been witnessing a worrying surge in COVID-19 cases amid concerns over mutated strains of the virus and increasing laxity among people in adhering to coronavirus-related protocols.
In fact, the country on Tuesday logged more than 53,000 fresh infections, taking the nationwide tally to over 1.21 crore.
India's death toll currently stands at over 1.62 lakh.