India steps up Mutant Covid tests for international travellers

The Union health ministry said on Tuesday all international passengers who have arrived in India during the last 14 days - from December 9 to December 22 this year, if symptomatic and tested positive for the coronavirus disease will have to undergo genome sequencing. The government said after six people tested positive for the super-infectious UK strain of the virus. The rest will be followed up by the states and their local administration. The longer time span and sweeping scope was decided on after it became clear that the mutant virus has spread beyond UK.

"It is easy to suppress the virus in the starting. Once the transmission is too widespread, it is hard to control," Dr VK Paul, a member of Niti Aayog, said in Hew Delhi on Tuesday. The government said the situation is "under careful watch". While the country temporarily banned flights from the UK on December 21, the UK strain of virus -- said to be 70 per cent more contagious -- has reached Denmark, Netherlands, Australia, Italy, Sweden, France, Spain, Switzerland, Germany, Canada, Japan, Lebanon and Singapore.