The Maharashtra government on Sunday declared six regions, including Delhi-NCR, Kerala and Gujarat as “ sensitive origins ” regarding the spread of Covid-19 and made it mandatory for rail passengers from those states to wear a negative RT- PCR report amid a wave of Covid-19 cases out there.
Areas classified as “sensitive origins” by Maharashtra are Kerala, Goa, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Delhi and NCR, and Uttarakhand. People who do not have a ticket reservation will not be allowed to board the train to Maharashtra from these states.
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Maharashtra Chief Secretary Sitaram Kunte also released a SOP for passengers traveling to Maharashtra from ‘sensitive origins’: here are all the rules
1. The railways will share the data of the trains scheduled to run between these origins and stations in Maharashtra with the local disaster management authority (DMA).
2. No unreserved tickets to Maharashtra should be issued on trains of sensitive origin. Additionally, passengers without a confirmed ticket should not be allowed to board for Maharashtra.
3. All passengers wishing to travel to Maharashtra will be required to undergo a negative RT-PCT test within 48 hours of travel.
4. All passengers will be subject to compulsory screening and only asymptomatic passengers will be allowed to board trains to Maharashtra. Social distancing must be ensured during embarkation / disembarkation and travel.
5. The railways will share the data with the local DMA of passengers traveling on said trains who are due to disembark at different stations in Maharashtra each day at the earliest, at least four hours before departure from the origin. The data should contain information on all passengers who can disembark at any station in Maharashtra. However, in some cases this data may not be fully available and therefore local authorities are advised to allow 10% more than the intended landing.
7. The railway authorities and the local DMA should maintain close coordination to exchange information on delays or schedule changes of trains and on the number of disembarking passengers.
8. The railway authorities should announce at each station en route the systems which have been put in place so that each passenger is informed of the rules to be followed. Railway authorities may also arrange for the printing of brochures in Hindi / Marathi (bilingual) to be distributed to all passengers to inform them of the appropriate expected Covid behavior and the dangers to themselves and their family members if they do not. do not. These should also contain information about fines, destination protocols, etc.
9. Railway authorities should ensure that trains from these origins arrive at the outer platforms where it may be easier to perform thermal and other checks without affecting passengers of other origins and without mixing the two. Also, as far as possible, all passengers getting off said trains to be guided to a single exit.
10. After disembarking, all passengers will be queued for screening. Passengers with a negative RT-PCR test will undergo minimal checks such as thermal scanning and symptom checking.
For those not carrying the report, health authorities may choose to install a rapid antigen testing (RAT) facility at the station, either using railroads, state government or laboratories. private. However, these passengers should only be released after reasonable confirmation that they are not infected, the order says.
11. Any passenger with a positive result for Covid-19 or exhibiting symptoms or refusing to undergo screening must necessarily be transferred to quarantine centers. If a passenger wishes to move to a hospital of their choice with an available bed, DMA can authorize the same.
12. All passengers without symptoms will be stamped on their hands for mandatory home quarantine for 15 days. This is also necessary for passengers who carry a negative RT-PCR test as well as those who have tested negative for RAT at the station or otherwise.
13. Anyone with a quarantined stamp found outside their home, except in a medical emergency within the period of 15 days from the stamping, will be fined Rs. 1000 / – and must be placed in institutional quarantine.
14. The local authorities should plan, in collaboration with the MSRTC / local public bus transport agents, the buses that may be used as a shuttle bus to take these passengers to joumey.
15. Railways should ensure that their employees take extra care when servicing trains of these origins.
16. The appropriate behavior of Covid in trains, we, as well as stations, must be strictly observed.
17. The railway will appoint a nodal officer for the state level as well as for the various levels of the DMA who will be responsible for the coordination with the SDMA and the DMA for the purposes of these guidelines.