The Delhi government on Thursday extended the seven-day mandatory institutional quarantine rule for those returning from the United Kingdom (UK) till January 31, in the wake of a new variant of the novel coronavirus being detected among people in that country.
The extension of the order comes nearly a week after the government on January 8 announced that all UK returnees, even if they test negative for Covid-19 at the airport, will have to mandatorily undergo a seven-day institutional quarantine followed by seven more days of home isolation. The protocol, as per the January 8 order, was to be strictly followed in Delhi on a trial basis for a week, till January 14.
“All those arriving from the UK, who test positive will be isolated and sent to an isolation facility. Those negative for Covid will be taken to a quarantine facility for seven days followed by seven days of home quarantine,” chief minister Arvind Kejriwal had tweeted.
He had further said this has been done “to protect Delhi residents from exposure to the virus from the UK”. The number of people infected with the new UK variant of SARS-CoV-2 in India has crossed 100 and reached 102 at present, the Union health ministry confirmed on Wednesday.
The presence of the new UK variant of the coronavirus has been reported by several countries, including Denmark, the Netherlands, Australia, Italy, Sweden, France, Spain, Switzerland, Germany, Canada, Japan, Lebanon and Singapore.
{{/usCountry}}The presence of the new UK variant of the coronavirus has been reported by several countries, including Denmark, the Netherlands, Australia, Italy, Sweden, France, Spain, Switzerland, Germany, Canada, Japan, Lebanon and Singapore.
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