In view of the rising Omicron cases globally as well within the country, the State Government has decided to temporarily and until further orders suspend all direct flights from United Kingdom to Kolkata with from January 3, 3022. Flights which are at risk as notified by the MOHFW, Government of India, will not be allowed in the State and any NOCs which have been issued stands withdrawn.
From January 3, 2022 all passengers coming from other non at-risk countries by international flights to West Bengal will have to mandatory undergo a test on arrival at their cost. The airlines will randomly select 10 per cent of the passengers for RT-PCR test and the balance 90 per cent shall undergo Rapid Antigen Test (RAT) at the arrival airport. Those found positive in the RAT test will have to further undergo RT-PCR tests as may be required by the health authorities. Further, all passengers have to mandatorily pre-book the test before boarding to reduce waiting time on arrival, which the airlines must ensure prior to allowing the boarding.
Accordingly, the airport authorities may be asked to augment the holding capacity of the arrival lounge on the international side and also increase the number of testing counters so as to reduce the waiting time for the passengers at the airport. Further, the airlines may be requested to evenly space out the flight arrivals in NSCBI, Kolkata in consultation with the Airport Director and the state nodal officer so as to reduce waiting time.
