After Chaos at Delhi Airport, Aviation Min Scindia Orders 'Better Management'

Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia ordered the airport operator to implement better crowd management strategies. Image used for representational purposes. 

(Photo Courtesy: Twitter/Delhi Airport)

After reports of crowd mismanagement and long queues at the Delhi airport, following concerns over the new Omicron variant of COVID-19, Union Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia on Monday, 6 December, ordered the city's airport operator DIAL to implement better crowd management strategies.

Union Minister Scindia had called a meeting of officials of the Airports Authority of India, Bureau of Immigration, and GMR group-led Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) on Monday, news agency PTI reported.

Representatives of Genestrings Diagnostics, the laboratory responsible for RT-PCR testing at the airport, were also in attendance at the high-level meeting.

Following the emergence on Omicron, the Health Ministry had issued fresh guidelines for travellers landing in India from 30 November. Chaos had ensued at the airport as passengers were subjected to greater scrutiny and COVID-testing, leading to longer queues and ruckus.

Delhi Airport on Monday announced that it has increased the COVID-testing capacity for international arrivals in order to make the transit process at the site smoother.

"We have updated testing capacity at international arrival with deployment of 120 Rapid PCR machines, taking hourly capacity to 500-600 per hour with a TAT of less than 60 minutes. Further, there is provision for approx. 500 RTPCR tests per/hr. This additional capacity will further smoothen the international arrival process," the airport stated.

(With inputs from PTI)