Review Easing Of International Flight Curbs, Says PM Amid New Strain Worries

New Delhi:

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday advised officials to review plans to ease restrictions on international travel in light of global concern over the new coronavirus variant – B.1.1.529, or Omicron – that was first detected in South Africa earlier this week.

The Prime Minister spoke about the need to monitor all international arrivals and conduct Covid tests as per existing guidelines, with a specific focus on ‘at risk’ countries.

PM Modi also highlighted the need to be proactive in efforts to contain the virus, and underlined the importance of remaining cautious and following all Covid safety protocols, including wearing face masks in public, washing hands regularly, and maintaining social distance.

The Prime Minister today chaired a meeting with senior officials, including the Cabinet Secretary, the Health Secretary, and the chief of India’s Covid task force, to review the situation in the country.

The meeting was held amid worries over the B.1.1.529 strain, which has been red flagged for “an alarmingly high number of mutations” that might make it more resistant to vaccines, increase transmissibility and lead to more severe symptoms.

The variant – first detected in South Africa this week, and since reported from Botswana, Hong Kong, Israel, and Belgium – is believed to have 50 mutations, including over 30 on the spike protein and 10 on the receptor binding domain.

The spike protein is the target of most current COVID-19 vaccines and is what the virus uses to unlock access to our body’s cells. Researchers are still trying to confirm whether this makes it more transmissible or lethal than earlier variants, and if existing vaccines can protect against the strain.

The call to review easing of international travel restrictions comes less than a day after the government said scheduled international passenger flights could resume from December 15.

The government said scheduled international passenger flights to and from India could return to normal, but only for countries not deemed ‘at risk’ by the Health Ministry.

South Africa, Botswana, Israel, and Hong Kong are on the ‘at risk’ list as of Thursday night, meaning only 75 per cent of scheduled passenger flights will be allowed till further notice.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal earlier today called on the Prime Minister to ban all flights from countries reporting Omicron Covid cases.

Gujarat has said that all those arriving on flights from a number of countries, including the United Kingdom, China, Brazil and New Zealand, as well as South Africa and Botswana, will be required to present negative RT-PCR tests.

Mumbai has ordered quarantine and genome sequencing for all South Africa arrivals at the city’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport.