18 inbound passengers test positive for COVID-19 at Karachi airport

KARACHI: Eighteen passengers have tested positive for COVID-19 after undergoing rapid antigen tests upon their arrival at Karachi airport, ARY News reported on Thursday.

Sources told ARY News that 16 out of 18 infected passengers have landed in Karachi via a Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) flight PK-9732 from Jeddah, whereas, the remaining two Covid-positive travellers came from Dubai via EK-600.

The Covid-positive travellers include 17 men and a woman who have been sent to their homes for a mandatory 10-day quarantine.

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Earlier on January 12, the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) had decided to revise the quarantine policy for inbound passengers.

The federal authorities had cancelled their central quarantine policy for inbound passengers and prepared new guidelines for Covid-positive travellers arriving in Pakistan.

The NCOC had issued a set of new instructions to the ministries of foreign affairs, interior and health. The new guidelines had also been notified to all four provinces and Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority (PCAA).

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It was learnt that Covid-positive inbound passengers will complete their quarantine period at their homes for 10 days. Moreover, those passengers who are staying at state-administered quarantine centres will be shifted to their homes.

All inbound passengers will undergo a mandatory rapid Covid-19 test at the airports and border terminals. The home quarantine policy will come into effect for those passengers entering Pakistan through the air or land borders.