Air India crew engaged in Vande Bharat mission will stay in Delhi hotel till test results come

Noida police commissioner Alok Singh said this is a consensus decision taken in consultation with Uttar Pradesh chief secretary, the Noida district administration and the Noida authority.

A day after the Noida police requested Air India to quarantine in Delhi its Noida-based crew members involved in the evacuation of Indian citizens stranded in different countries due to coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, the city police Saturday said the airline has agreed to do so.

The Air India crew members will now be quarantined in a hotel in Delhi till their Covid-19 test reports come. (PTI file photo. Representative image)

The crew members will now be quarantined in a hotel in Delhi till their Covid-19 test reports come. If their test reports are negative, they can return to their residences in Gautam Budh Nagar.

Noida police commissioner Alok Singh said this is a consensus decision taken in consultation with Uttar Pradesh chief secretary, the Noida district administration and the Noida authority.

“We have received information that there are about 25 pilots and 40 service staff of Air India living in Gautam Budh Nagar. They may join the international flights being operated to evacuate Indian citizens stranded abroad. Once the evacuation is over, these crew members will be kept in a hotel in Delhi for a few days till their medical reports come. Once the report is negative, they can come to their homes in Noida. This is a fair decision,” he said.

Noida health department will again test these crew members on the fifth day of their arrival for safety purposes.

On Friday, Noida police had requested the national carrier to quarantine the crew members in Delhi, in order to check the spread of the virus in Gautam Budh Nagar. The Noida police said the ministry of home affairs had issued a standard operating procedure (SOP) on May 5, regarding evacuation of people stranded in foreign countries, and also foreign nationals stranded in India.

“We requested the management of the national carrier to keep these crew members in institutional quarantine in Delhi. We have received Air India’s response and they have agreed to do this. Accordingly, the crew members would commute between Noida and Delhi,” Sriparna Gongulee, additional commissioner of police, Gautam Budh Nagar, said.

India has planned to send 60 flights spread over a week to bring back hundreds of its citizens stranded in different countries.

Air India could not be reached for comment on the matter.