Passengers from UK to be Sent to Quarantine Facility: Delhi Govt

The passengers tested positive for COVID-19 will be taken to an isolation facility.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Thursday asked the Centre to extend the flight ban till 31 January, owing to the ‘extremely serious’ COVID-19 situation in the UK.

(Image: Arnica Kala/ The Quint)

The Government of Delhi issued a statement on Friday, 8 January, announcing that all COVID-19 positive passengers arriving from the United Kingdom will be isolated in an isolation facility. This step comes as a precautionary measure amid the spread of the highly transmissible variant of the virus, which was first discovered in the UK.

“The passengers who tested negative will also be taken to a quarantine facility for seven days and will be required to home quarantine for seven more days,” Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal tweeted.

This development comes after Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Puri announced the lift of ban on flights to and from UK on Wednesday. 30 flights between India and the UK are set to operate every week.

UK Flight Reaches Delhi on 8 January

An Air India flight from the UK had already arrived in Delhi on Friday, 8 January, with 246 passengers on board.

However, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Thursday asked the Centre to extend the flight ban till 31 January, owing to the ‘extremely serious’ COVID-19 situation in the UK. He had questioned the central government, “Why lift the ban and expose our people to risk?”

The total number of people who tested positive for the new strain of COVID-19 has reached 82 in the country.