Odisha Steps Up Checking Of Foreign Returnees At Bhubaneswar, Jharsuguda Airports

Bhubaneswar: Odisha has intensified scrutiny of international passengers at Jharsuguda airport with more cases of Omicron being reported in three states of the country.

With five cases reported in India, scrutiny of international travellers at Biju Patnaik International Airport in Bhubaneswar and Veer Surendra Sai Airport in Jharsuguda is being carried out as per the guidelines of Airports Authority of India and pandemic protocols of Health department.

Jharsuguda Collector Saroj Samal said they are collecting details about fliers coming from foreign countries, especially from high-risk African nations, which have been earmarked by the State and Central governments during last 14 days.

For those who escape the RT-PCR test at airport, there is system to collect his/her address. After identifying their address, the officials  concerned take measures to collect their swabs from their place of stay, he added.

Public Health Director Niranjan Mishra said data regarding passengers arriving from foreign locations is shared with district authorities and they are directed to trace such travellers and take steps to keep them in quarantine.

As per the government protocol, on the eighth day of a passenger’s arrival, such travellers will have to undergo RT-PCR test and if anyone tests COVID-19 positive, their genome sequencing will be carried out to confirm if they are infected by Omicron variant.

He, however, requested people to be cautious and follow the protocols to keep the new variant out of the state’s boundaries.

All people who have returned from foreign locations and travelled to their villages or towns by road transport have also been requested to report to the government.

As on Sunday, one each Omicron variant case has been identified in Delhi, Maharashtra and Gujarat and two in Karnataka.