December 2, 2020 7:59:41 am
Maharashtra government rules imply that passengers arriving from all four states at the airport must bring a negative report from an RT-PCR test performed 72 hours prior to arrival. (Express file photo)
In the week since the Maharashtra government announced a mandatory Covid-19 RT-PCR test for passengers traveling from Delhi, Rajasthan, Goa and Gujarat, only 1,565 domestic passengers arriving at the airport have been tested.
The new rule went into effect on November 25, but the limited staff at the airport cannot guarantee that everyone who arrives without a negative RT-PCR test report from their departure point will be screened.
On a daily basis, thousands of passengers who do not carry a negative RT-PCR report sneak away untested at the airport. Faced with 250-260 daily tests at the airport, the railroads are testing between 2,000 and 2,500 passengers arriving from these four states, but the number of passengers arriving by train is much higher.
Maharashtra government rules imply that passengers arriving from the four states to the airport must bring a negative report from an RT-PCR test performed 72 hours before arrival, and at train stations, a 96 hour test is required before arrival at the station. Those who do not carry this report must be screened at the station or airport before they are allowed to go home.
While the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is responsible for screening passengers at train stations, at the airport, according to BMC officials, it is Mumbai International Airport Limited that must screen and assess passengers. However, MIAL has requested the BMC to delegate to civic officers as it cannot manage inbound passenger load with its existing staff.
Abhinav Mishra, who took a flight from Amritsar to Delhi and then to Mumbai on November 27, said he was never detained and asked to submit the RT-PCR report. Nor had he undergone any tests prior to his arrival.
On November 29, another passenger who landed from Goa on an afternoon flight said that several passengers managed to leave without being directed to the test kiosks. According to protocol, when a flight lands, passengers with negative RT-PCR reports can get off first. The remaining passengers, except those with a connecting flight to another city, make their way to the test kiosks from a checkpoint near the airlift.
On the ground, however, there are too few officials to handle the huge crowd that descends from each flight. Several are not asked for their RT-PCR reports. The test kiosks have been placed close to the baggage claim belts, making it easy for non-testing users to collect their bags and leave without being stopped.
When a flight lands, passengers are not willing to wait long in queues. The existing manpower at the airport is inadequate to quickly examine each passenger’s RT-PCR report.
A MIAL spokesperson said the task of screening passengers for their RT-PCR reports and directing them to the test booths rests with BMC. “We only organize test facilities. We have a capacity to test between 3,000 and 5,000 passengers in a day, which can be scaled up to 10,000 if necessary, ”the spokesperson said.
However, the BMC said they have asked the airport authority to screen all domestic passengers and accept the help of local police if the passengers refuse to cooperate. “The BMC does not carry out RT-PCR tests for domestic passengers. It must be done by the airport operator. For international passengers, a BMC team monitors and conducts tests and makes sure they are all tested (for Covid-19), ”said additional municipal commissioner P Velrasu.
Velrasu added: “People traveling in large groups refuse to be tested. In such a scenario, we have asked the airport authority to enlist the help of the local police. “
In a letter dated 23 November, the BMC had written to the Airports Authority of India and the CEO of Mumbai International Airport that “only after testing, will the airport operator allow passengers to return home” . The letter said that the responsibility for organizing the test centers rests with the airport and that passengers can be charged directly for the test.
Velrasu said that half of the passengers landing at Mumbai airport are from Delhi, Gujarat, Rajasthan and Goa. Civic officials said Delhi remains a point of concern with large numbers of cases being diagnosed every day, and a large population of Mumbai has started visiting Goa for tourism purposes, making it another point for easy transmission of the coronavirus. Gujarat and Rajasthan witness the daily movement of people to and from Maharashtra. “When the number of passengers is huge, they may run into some operational problems, such as a lack of staff to closely monitor passengers. We will speak with them (the airport) again so that they carry out the tests correctly, ”said Velrasu.
Meanwhile, the test kiosks at the six train stations (CSMT, Mumbai Central, Dadar, Bandra Terminus, LTT and Borivali) in the city have been simplified after confusion and chaos in the first days of the entry into force. of the new rules. An additional support staff of five to six security guards at the stations monitor passengers coming from the four states, hold the queues and guide them through tests.
On average, every day, 10,000 passengers get off at the six train stations in Delhi, Goa, Rajasthan, and Gujarat, and between 2,000 and 2,500 are tested. However, the number of passengers who tested positive for Covid-19 has remained low. Between November 25 and 29, only 20 passengers tested positive for Covid-19. “Not everyone who arrives at stations without a negative RT-PCR report is tested. Our teams monitor the temperature before recommending antigen testing, but many may go undetected as they have no symptoms, ”said a health worker at the Dadar kiosk.
Testing at train stations has also been faster because only symptomatic passengers make their way to the test booths, as opposed to the airport, where each passenger is supposed to be tested.
A Central Railway official said there are currently no CR trains from Delhi and Rajasthan. Punjab Mail from Delhi will start this week. Since there are few trains from Goa on the central line, we are not experiencing crowds at the stations, ”said the CR spokesperson.
A Western Railway spokesperson said they only faced overcrowding issues in the first two days at the Bandra terminal.
“Since RT-PCR tests are no longer carried out in train stations and only antigen is used, the detection process has become faster,” said the WR spokesperson.
© The Indian Express (P) Ltd
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