14-day isolation must for people out of quarantine, says new government rules

The standard operating procedure (SoP), issued on Friday by the state executive committee — headed by chief secretary Vijay Dev — also talks about the transit arrangements of foreign nationals who arrived in the city after February 15 and were put under mandatory quarantine.

People who complete their mandatory 14-day quarantine periods at government facilities will be allowed to return home only through routes approved by the district administration and within a specified time frame, a fresh set of guidelines issued by the Delhi government stated.

Till Saturday, Delhi had recorded 445 Covid-19 positive cases, with six deaths. Fifteen people have recovered and one is out of the country. (Burhaan Kinu/HT photo)

According to senior health officials, the standard operating procedure (SoP) for patients who have recovered and those who have finished their quarantine period is almost the same, and mandates that they stay in self-isolation for 14 more days.

The standard operating procedure (SoP), issued on Friday by the state executive committee — headed by chief secretary Vijay Dev — also talks about the transit arrangements of foreign nationals who arrived in the city after February 15 and were put under mandatory quarantine.

Till Saturday, Delhi had recorded 445 Covid-19 positive cases, with six deaths. Fifteen people have recovered and one is out of the country.

“In case of stranded foreign nationals, the concerned foreign government, in consultation with the ministry of civil aviation, Government of India, will arrange for chartered flights. Screening for Covid-19 symptoms as per protocol will be done prior to departure and local transportation will be provided by the embassy concerned. Transit passes will be issued by district magistrate for transit routes,” read the SoP, which was drafted on Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal’s directive.

The L-G’s directive came on March 31 after he received complaints that several foreign nationals were stranded in Delhi even after completing their quarantine period. Similar complaints also came from Indian nationals who returned from abroad after February 15, completed their 14-day quarantine in government centres and have not been able to return home despite testing negative for Covid-19 due to the 21-day nationwide lockdown.

The total number of people quarantined as of Saturday was 3,531, of which 374 had completed the quarantine period. Out of 374, 219 have tested negative for Covid-19. Of the 219, at least 102 have been discharged from institutional quarantine.

“We declare a Covid-19 patient as recovered if two consecutive test results, within a minimum span of 24 hours, comes negative. The person is then discharged from the hospital. But, the story doesn’t end there,” said Dr Nutan Mundeja, Delhi’s director general of health services.

“They are then asked to self-quarantine at their homes for another 14 days. The drill is the same for even those who have completed their 14-day quarantine in a government facility or at their homes. So, the entire follow-up exercise actually goes on for 28 days in every case,” she said.

The latest SoP also stated that no person of any group will be released where even one person tests positive for Covid-19.

“Transport arrangement has to be made by the person themselves and transit for fixed route with specified validity for such person will be issued by district magistrate of concerned district. Such person will further remain under home quarantine for a period of 14 days as per standard protocol on the matter; the details of such person will be shared with state/UT government for necessary follow up,” read the document.

As on Saturday, a total of 101 transit passes had been issued, a senior official said.

A senior official in the revenue department said that more than 700 district surveillance teams are currently active across Delhi for contact tracing, and monitoring recovered patients and those under home quarantine.

The New Delhi district, for example, has 98 district surveillance teams comprising doctors and paramedical staff, who also work in resolving all complaints received from the district. Similarly, the south-west district has 76 such teams.

District magistrate (south-west) Rahul Singh said there are eight Covid-19 positive cases in the district. There are another 3,587 people under home quarantine, and 300 placed in institutional quarantine facilities.

“If a suspected case is found, then a poster is pasted outside their home for mandatory home quarantine. In case higher level of scrutiny, the person is kept at an institutional quarantine centre being operational in the district at 2 places — sector 9 PTS Dwarka and DUSIB flats in Sector 16 Dwarka.

Together, both the facilities are housing 300 individuals in quarantine. When a person is found to be positive, the individual is sent to the designated Covid hospital,” Singh said.