Coronavirus: State government set up screening and testing counters in NE airports

In view of the Novel Coronavirus threat in China, the Airport Authority of India (AAI) with the help of the concerned state governments has set up screening and testing counters in most of the airports of northeast India, a top AAI official said on Monday.

Officials in Mizoram capital Aizawl said that two people, who had returned to the state from China early January, have been kept under house quarantine in view of the outbreak of the deadly Coronavirus in the neighbouring country.

An official of Mizoram Health Department said that though both the person did not show any sign of being infected with the virus and both of them tested negative for the deadly virus, they were put under house quarantine as a precautionary measure.

AAI Regional Executive Director (NER) Sanjeev Jindal said that the Lokopriya Gopinath Bordoloi international airport in Guwahati is the only airport in the northeast region from where the international flight operations took place with Singapore and Bhutan.

He told IANS that following the standard operating procedure (SOP) received from the central government, a special screening, testing and checking counter with the help of the Assam government has been functioning at the Guwahati airport since last week.

A special ambulance is also kept ready at the Guwahati airport and an isolated unit has also created in a Guwahati hospital for the suspected patient. Similar such screening and testing counters were set up in the other major airports including Agartala’s Maharaja Bir Bikram airport, Lengpui airport in Mizoram and Imphal airport in Manipur.

Jindal said that the Coronavirus screening teams at the Guwahati airport has been equipped with various instruments including infrared thermometer to check body temperature and other symptoms.

“No case of the Coronavirus suspect has been detected in the northeast India. No reason to be panicky. None should not be hide any kind of symptom. Airlines have been asked to to give announcement before landing so that the doubtful or suspected passengers could be able to screen and test them,” the AAI Regional Executive Director said.