The Indian authorities have confirmed the flight of an infected patient with the omicron variant of the coronavirus. As they explain, the infected person evaded security controls and escaped the country.
The Minister of Finance of the Indian state of Karnataka, R. Ashok, has detailed that it is a 66-year-old man who arrived in India from South Africa on November 20. When he took the anticovid test, the result came back positive so he was immediately isolated in a hotel.
There he was serving quarantine until his disappearance on November 27, when he took a taxi to Bengaluru airport and left for Dubai.
“We have filed a complaint with the police and we will see what happened in the hotel, from where the person escaped,” said the Indian minister.
How did you manage to escape?
India maintains the measure of not allowing travelers to leave the airport until you know the result of the PCR tests. However, the person who is now looking for the authorities managed to circumvent the controls after taking a new test in a private laboratory that gave a negative result.
The patient had the complete vaccination schedule and did not present symptoms of the virus. In addition, about 20 people who met with him in the days before his infection, and another 240 secondary contacts, underwent antigen tests, the results of which have been negative.
So far, the country has notified two cases linked to the new African strain, both located in the state of Karnataka. The other person is a 46-year-old doctor with no travel history.
Travel restrictions
India this week announced new travel restrictions for international passengers arriving from “at risk” areas. The list includes countries such as the United Kingdom, South Africa, New Zealand, Bangladesh, Hong Kong and Israel.
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