Mumbai airport’s RT-PCR test facility detects 100 passengers with Covid-19

Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) detected 100 Covid-19 positive passengers in around two months. The reverse transcription-polymerase chain

Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) detected 100 Covid-19 positive passengers in around two months. The reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test facility at the Mumbai airport that started functioning for international arriving transit passengers from September, and for departing passengers from mid-October, has seen over 8,000 passengers (till November 8) signing up to undergo the test.

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According to airport sources, till October 14, 38 arriving passengers were detected with the Sars-CoV-2 virus that causes Covid-19, and 62 tested positive in less than a month between October 15 and November 8.

Of the total 8,000 passengers who signed up for the test, 6,910 were men and 1,090 were women.

“A hundred passengers have tested positive till now and were transferred by the state authorities to designated Covid-19 institutions,” said a CSMIA spokesperson. “There is an increase in passenger confidence in travelling via CSMIA given the comfort, convenience and sense of safety that passengers feel with the measures adopted by the airport. These features include the launch of the RT-PCR test facility at the airport,” he added.

After the aviation ministry allowed international passengers to get tested upon arrival, the airport had commenced RT-PCR testing as a measure to skip the institutional quarantine. It was also introduced to address passenger concerns regarding different Covid-19 regulations across domestic and international destinations.

However, just three days after the Central government issued guidelines allowing international passengers to undergo the RT-PCR test upon arrival, aviation experts had raised safety concerns and had asked the ministry to review their guidelines. Experts believed that the guidelines issued on a pilot basis would encourage fliers to avoid getting tested and would increase the risk of Covid-positive passengers infecting others on board.