16 out of 78 Afghanistan evacuees test Covid positive

16 out of 78 evacuees who were airlifted by the Indian Air Force (IAF) from Afghanistan to New Delhi on Tuesday have tested positive for Coronavirus.

New Delhi: Among 78 evacuees who were airlifted by the Indian Air Force (IAF) from Afghanistan to New Delhi on Tuesday, 16 of them have been diagnosed Covid positive. The group had arrived in the national capital at 12 pm and they were all subjected to Covid tests. Among the people tested positive were three Granthis who had brought the three historical and handwritten Guru Granth Sahib from Kabul, Afghanistan. The Union Health Ministry has asked for a mandatory institutional quarantine for people coming from Afghanistan.

Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri, Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan and Bharatiya Janata Party leader RP Singh on Tuesday had received three Swaroop of Sri Guru Granth Sahib brought from Kabul at the Delhi airport. Hardeep Singh Puri had also tweeted, "Blessed to receive & pay obeisance to three holy Swaroop of Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji from Kabul to Delhi."

Read:Mandatory quarantine for people coming from Afghanistan

India is undertaking emergency evacuation of people from Afghanistan. Considering the nature of the crisis, the Union Health Ministry has already allowed exemption from mandatory pre-boarding RT-PCR testing (presently mandated for international travellers) of these people.