India announces mandatory PCR tests for arrivals from 5 countries

AFP / Arun Sankar

Travellers from China, Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong and Thailand will be subjected to mandatory PCR tests upon arrival in India and put under quarantine if they test positive or display symptoms of COVID-19.

Arrivals from the countries mentioned above must also fill out the Air Suvidha form and declare their current health status. 

From December 24, Saturday, India will start random testing of 2 per cent of international passengers for COVID-19 arriving at its airports.

The authorities have urged everyone to wear masks and observe proper physical distancing. 

Children under the age of 12 are exempt from testing unless they are found to be symptomatic then, they shall undergo testing and be treated as per the protocol.

More from International News

  • UN warns funding cuts threaten vital aid

    The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) have sounded the alarm over severe funding shortfalls that are hindering life-saving humanitarian aid in countries including Nigeria, Burundi, and Colombia.

  • Multiple dead in Vancouver after vehicle plows into street festival

    A number of people were killed and multiple others were injured in Vancouver after a driver drove into a crowd at a Filipino street festival in the western Canadian city, police said on Saturday.

  • Rome and the world bid farewell to Pope Francis

    Presidents, royalty and simple mourners bade farewell to Pope Francis on Saturday at a solemn funeral ceremony, where a cardinal appealed for the pontiff's legacy of caring for migrants, the downtrodden and the environment to be kept alive.

  • Trump, Zelenskyy meet in Vatican basilica to seek Ukraine peace

    US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy, in Rome for the funeral of Pope Francis, met one-on-one in a marble-lined Vatican basilica on Saturday to try to revive faltering efforts to end Russia's war with Ukraine.

Coming Up