Cabinet Secretary, Rajib Gauba, has informed in a letter addressed to chief secretary that more than 15 lakh international passengers arrived in India between 18 January and 23 March; which, the letter states, is more than the number of passengers under monitoring for COVID-19 in states and union territories across India.
“This may seriously jeopardise our efforts to contain spread of COVID-19, given that many amongst the persons who tested positive for COVID-19 so far in India have history of international travel,” adds the letter. “It is important that they are put under close surveillance to prevent the spread of the epidemic.”
The novel coronavirus has infected more than half-a-million people across 184 countries and more than 24,000 have died. In India, the number of positive cases has surpassed 700, yet the government says that the country has not entered the phase of community transmission.
