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Travelling to India? No RT-PCR test at airport, quarantine for international flyers from today

International passengers arriving in India will not require to undergo mandatory weeklong quarantine as new COVID-19 guidelines of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare come into force from today. This Standard Operating Procedure will be valid from midnight of February 14 till further orders. According to the guidelines, all the passengers will show self-declaration form on arrival at the airport. The passengers found to be symptomatic during screening will be immediately isolated and taken to medical facility under health protocol. Here is the updated list of guidelines for international arrivals in India: In the latest guidelines, it is also mentioned that the mandatory 72-hour report of RT-PCR is not required anymore and the travellers can show their full Vaccination Certificate. The government has also removed the 'At Risk' marking for various countries with high Omicron caseloads. Post arrival mandates that two per cent of the total passengers in a flight will undergo random testing at the airport. Such travellers in each flight will be identified by the airlines concerned, preferably from different countries. If travellers under self-health monitoring develop signs and symptoms suggestive of COVID-19, they will immediately self-isolate and report to their nearest health facility or call national helpline number (1075)/ state helpline number. The guidelines further stipulate all travellers should submit complete and factual information in self-declaration form on the online air portal Suvidha before the scheduled travel, including last 14 days' travel details. They will also upload a negative COVID-19 RT-PCR report not earlier than 72 hrs prior to undertaking the travel or certificate of completing full primary vaccination schedule. Besides uploading negative RT-PCR report (taken 72 hrs prior to journey), option to upload a certificate of completing full primary vaccination schedule of COVID-19 vaccination provided from countries on a reciprocal basis. 14 days Self-Monitoring post-arrival as against 7 days Home Quarantine as was mandated earlier.

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Sikkim decides to lift COVID related restrictions

The government in Sikkim has announced that COVID restrictions will now be lifted in the state. The decision comes after Sikkim saw a significant decline in COVID 19 cases. According to an order released by the authorities, "The Sikkim government issued an order on Thursday that reads, "the decision to lift the restriction was taken after the state noted a significant decline in the Covid-19 case." The state in Eastern Himalayas is one of the major attractions in the country, and this paves way to a new beginning after a harrowing two years of COVID 19. The state has some of the best natural attractions, besides being a centre of culture for Sikkimese people. The state government in Sikkim has decided to allow markets, shops, and commercial establishments to function as normal. Also, education institutions are allowed to remain open and function. The state has also decided to permit social, political, religious, and sports-related gatherings to continue without any restrictions. However, it has asked civilians to practice caution as the pandemic is still ongoing. Sikkim currently has a total of 541 active cases, according to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. India today reported 44877 fresh cases of COVID 19 infection, which is 11 percent lower than yesterday. The country further reported 117591 recoveries from the virus in the last 24 hours, and has administered a total of 172.81 crore vaccine doses as of today.

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On Valentine’s Day, Kerala Tourism launches ‘Honeymoon Holidays’ campaign

Promoting Kerala as a safe and glamorous honeymoon destination, Kerala Tourism has launched a high-octane campaign by stapling it with lyrical micro video song to lure honeymooners from across the world to the state. As part of the campaign, the Department of Tourism has produced a music album titled ‘Love is in the air’, featuring eight micro love songs with each song having a duration under one minute. Kerala Tourism has released the songs on its social media pages to promote Kerala as a prime and perfect honeymoon destination. Sung by the popular folk/indie band, When Chai Met Toast, the micro love songs videos have already got around one lakh views collectively. Also, the audio songs reached more than 75 lakh people across the country through multiple music platforms like Spotify, Gaana, Hungama, JioSaavan and Wynk. Pitching the campaign on Valentine’s Day, Kerala Tourism announced a contest for its social media followers to create reels using the lyrical video micro love songs released on Kerala Tourism’s social media pages. The best reels will win a free trip to Kerala. The campaign, Honeymoon Holidays, was originally unveiled after the second wave of Covid-19 and the subsequent travel relaxations. It was temporarily shelved after the pandemic’s third wave started

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India-UAE ticket rates are dropping since last week despite steady travel demand

Return fares on some India-to-UAE flights are starting to drop as the former rolls back COVID-19 related travel requirements. According to travel industry sources, return fares on select routes are now at around Dh1,200 on average compared with Dh2,500 just a week ago. “The Pune airport is also open, which means people no longer have to travel all the way to Mumbai to board a Dubai flight,” said one travel agent in Dubai. (Last month, Pune Airport resumed international flights after a near two-year halt due to the pandemic. The first flight to take off to an international destination was Sharjah.) Dubai, Doha and Sharjah were the top international destinations from Mumbai airport last year, replacing previous placeholders such as London Heathrow and Newark. Last week, India said that passengers from more than 80 countries would be allowed to travel to the country with just a negative RT-PCR test report or a certificate of completing the primary vaccination schedule. The list features travellers from the US, the UK, Switzerland, Australia, Sweden, Spain and Sri Lanka, but does not presently include UAE. “At present, we haven’t heard anything on this from the authorities,” said a spokesperson for Dubai Link Tours. “We usually get a circular from Emirates airline notifying us of any changes, but this time there was nothing. Demand is strong with a lot of people travelling over weekends - and yet fares have come down quite a bit.”

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Centre approves INR 2.5 cr for country's biggest tribal fair 'Sammakka Saralamma'

Union Minister for Tourism and Culture, G Kishan Reddy, on Sunday, said that the Central government has approved the release of INR 2.5 crore for 'Sammakka Saralamma Jathara', the largest tribal festival in the world.the unique culture and heritage of tribal communities. The Sammakka Saralamma Medaram Jatara is one of the largest tribal festivals in the world and the government is extending all possible support," said Reddy. Ahead of the tribal festival 'Sammakka Saralamma Jathara' from February 16, Union Minister for Tourism and Culture further stated that the Central government has sanctioned approximately 80 crore for the development of the tribal circuit in Telangana. The 'Sammakka Saralamma Jathara' is the country's biggest tribal fair which takes place once every two years. It is said to be one of the largest gatherings of tribal communities. This year it is scheduled between February 16 and 19 in Medaram- a village in Telangana's tribal heartland of Mulugu district "The Government of India sanctioned approximately 80 crore for the tribal circuit in Telangana and this included the construction of tourist amenities center, amphitheater, public convenience facilities, cottages, tented accommodation, gazebos, seating Benches, solid waste management infrastructure, solar lights, landscaping and drinking water fountains in Medaram," said G Kishan Reddy The Minister informed that since 2014 the Tourism Ministry, under the Domestic promotion and Publicity including hospitality scheme has released 2.45 crore for celebrating various festivals across the state of Telangana. "Funds will also be allocated for competitions like photography, short film, paintings, sculptures, and the arrangement of tribal cultural programmes during the Medaram Jathara, Economic Support to Koya Dance Troupes, Kommu Koya, Rela Dance Troupes, Painting Unit by considering them as MSME Units and other programmes," said the Union Minister.

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Goa industry body bats for nautical tourism in state

Given the wide scope of maritime tourism, Goa needs a comprehensive roadmap for the state which focuses on infrastructure creation, skill development, employment generation and standardisation in nautical CII-Goa, in a report submitted to the outgoing government, said that Goa also needs sustainable environment policies to govern nautical tourism. The CII-Goa panel on tourism listed a set of recommendations that could help Goa diversify its tourism and harness the revenue and employment potential of nautical tourism. Convener of CII’s panel on tourism, Hemant Arondekar briefed tourism secretary J Ashok Kumar who agreed with the panel’s recommendations. “The report presented various recommendations which CII-Goa aims to pursue with the state and the Centre so that the sunrise sector of nautical tourism can truly transform Goa’s tourism sector,” said Arondekar. “There is a need for a comprehensive roadmap for the state which focuses on infrastructure creation, skill development, employment generation and standardisation in nautical tourism.” Goa needs a boat docking facility with some basic infrastructure for refuelling, minor repairs and replenishment of supplies to benefit the yacht owners and operators,” said Arondekar. CII-Goa pointed out that most pleasure-boats and yachts currently operate from floating jetties which are small and can be unsafe. “Goa has a wide scope of maritime tourism activities ranging from traditional fishing to international cruise vessels. Given that inland waterways is a state subject, the Centre and the Goa government need to adopt uniform rules and regulations that make it simpler to operate pleasure boats,” he said.

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