Thiruvananthapuram : Certain quarters are actively engaged in fabricating provocations in order to set expatriate population against the government, said Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan at press meet held Wednesday. All Malayalis wishing to return to Kerala shall undoubtedly be fetched from their respective countries. The govt had declared this assurance earlier and there is no stepping back on that count. Kerala to this date, never flagged a ‘no’ to any flight bound here. Permissions for 72 flights have been cleared in just a day’s time today and 14,058 people are expected to land by various flights before dawn tomorrow. Of the 72, except for one, all 71 flights are from the Gulf countries , said CM.
Permission for such large number of flights is part of government pandemic policy to have our people back here, regardless to where they might be stranded. 543 flights and 3 ships bringing expats have reached Kerala so far. Of these, 335 were chartered planes and 208 planes belonged to Vande Bharat mission. The govt lend its nod to a total of 1,114 flights via signing 154 consent forms so far. More than 400 chartered planes are slated to arrive on 30 June following consent form clearance.
Overseas passengers who test positive for Covid-19 will be given cost-free treatment. Incidentally, numerous such individuals - some with severe medical conditions and aged - have been treated successfully by our healthcare system.
The ongoing pandemic has killed 4.80 lakh people across countries and provinces of the world more than 90 lakh people have fallen sick with the virus. Currently there are 38 lakh people under treatment around the globe.
Ethnic Malayali expatriates live in settlements across continents. I have expressed anguish over Malayali deaths abroad several times on this forum. It may be noted that none among those who died abroad met their death owing to sate blockade to their travel here. Each deceased person invariably availed Covid treatment in the country of their stay.
One regional newspaper published pictures of all Malayalis who died abroad and topped it with the headline “How many more need to die ?” . The picture was captioned to say that more lives would be lost if government continued callousness. I do not wish to comment on that however.
In overstepping boundaries, it would do good to remember that there are Malayalis out there in all those countries named and that the expats lodged there have to continue living there. While portraying the countries of their residences as unsafe destinations, do you pause to imagine the implications for them ? Distorting facts should have some limits, said CM.
Wonder what kind of mindset such propagators possess? Deaths have not been a result of callousness or neglect. One should recall there existed no means of travel either by air or otherwise during complete lockdown. Needless to say, all victims of the virus are a sentiment close to Malayali hearts. Death is painful. However leveraging from it is a sickness more dreadful than the pandemic itself, said CM.
The state has observed strict guidelines so far. The trend will continue. Incidentally, truths don’t cease to exist just because we keep them under wraps. Ninety percent of covid cases pertain to people who came in from other countries or states. Over 69 percent involve overseas arrivals. It is not up to us to intervene with health systems prevailing in other countries. Our intervention is limited to pre-flight screening of passengers heading here. Skipping this step would mean, exposing more people to the infection in the course of their flight. The situation potentially endangers lives of all embarking planes homeward.
During first phase of flights inward, nearly 45 percent of passengers comprised pregnant women, little children, the aged and people with severe health conditions. Traveling amid infected people would have meant huge risk to their lives, something that’s not allowed in the ordinary course.
High-risk primary contact should be prevented at all cost. Deaths pertaining to such infections are rather high. Transmission of the virus from one infected individual to several others leads to ‘super spread’. And studies indicate that ambience involving air travels are conducive to such spread. This is why the govt decided to insist on pre-flight screening before embarking on air travel.
Right from the beginning, the government has endeavoured not disrupt journeys or force their postponement for those wishing to return to Kerala. For this, the administration contacted both the Centre and various embassies. It was decided to mandate tests or air travels since 20th of this month. However there exist some hitches and the implementation is now postponed to five days more. It would be possible to work things out soon with intervention from External Affairs Ministry and talks with concerned embassies.
Without doubt, the government is obliged to bring back all Malayalis wishing to return here. And at each stage, the administration has taken all necessary steps to fulfill that responsibility. Private airplanes, chartered crafts and Vande Bharat Mission planes will commence operations tomorrow.
Protocol Upon Arrival
People coming from countries with testing facilities should try to have themselves checked before catching flights. The results will be valid for 72 hours. All passengers should register their details on Covid-199 Jagratha site. Upon arrival, each individual should observe health protocol and subject themselves to varied screening. Those with symptoms of the disease will be transported separately to hospitals. Though pre-flight tests might have been negative, each person must compulsorily undergo Rapid Anti-body Testing upon landing at the airport.
Those testing positive for anti-bodies would be subject to further confirmatory tests. Also, regardless of tests turning negative, all passengers from abroad must undergo 14-day quarantine mandated by the government. People coming from outside countries must wear N95 mask, face shield and gloves. Sanitisers must be used frequently to keep hands disinfected. Those from Qatar should have Ehteraz Apple Green Status. And yet, all tests as for others would be mandatory for them too. UAE is conducting anti-body tests on all its passengers. Those traveling from Bahrain and Oman should wear N95 mask , face shield and gloves . Returnees from Saudi too should wear N95 mask, face shield and gloves, and additionally wear PPE kit too. Those traveling from Kuwait without prior tests too should wear PPE kits.
Masks, face shields, gloves and PPE kits used by arriving passengers will be disposed off safely at the airport. Airports will be equipped to conduct all required tests. Those violating govt set rules will face stringent litigation. For taking chartered flights, one should obtain NOC from concerned embassy. Details on how to apply has been published. Consent form would be made available at NORKA seven days in advance. Visit Covid-19 Jagratha website for all details.
