Delhi's strict Covid-19 quarantine rules catch UK returnees unawares

Delhi government on Friday imposed stricter quarantine conditions on passengers returning from Britain leading to chaotic scenes at the international airport.

Passengers claimed to have been caught unaware about the Delhi government's protocol mandating a compulsory seven-day institutional quarantine to all persons returning from Britain.

An Air India aircraft with 256 passengers on board landed here on Friday.

Read: India tests Covid-19 vaccine delivery systems for second time

“Dear Arvind Kejriwal, I am one of the passengers of flight AI112 from London with my 4.5 months old daughter. You locked everyone of us. At least bacche pe to rahem karte (have mercy on the kid). There is no food for my daughter & they didn't let me get my stroller. How cruel you guys are,” Gouri Shankar Dash, an executive with a multinational firm said on Twitter.

“This is ridiculous. You cannot tell people the rules have changed after they land. Some notice must be given! Chaos at Delhi Airport with this flight, families with small children, pregnant woman howling,” Sanjiv Kapoor, an aviation industry veteran, said on Twitter.

Those arriving at the Delhi International Airport will have to shell out Rs 3,400 for the RT-PCR test and lounge facilities as they await for the results.

Air India claimed on Twitter on Friday evening that it had informed the flight's passengers about the new advisory of the Delhi government before the aircraft took off from the Heathrow airport Thursday night.

“Around 20 passengers opted to cancel their flight on being informed by Air India's London team of this advisory. The announcement was repeated during the flight as well,” the carrier added.

India had suspended all passenger flights between the UK and India from December 23 to January 7 as a new variant of coronavirus emerged in the UK.