PESHAWAR: As many as 60 passengers, who arrived from United Arab Emirates (UAE), have tested positive for the novel coronavirus at Baccha Khan International Airport, Peshawar today (Thursday).
Today (Thursday), two passenger flights, including Pakistan International Airline (PIA) and Emirates Airline, carrying around 500 passengers arrived at the Baccha Khan International Airport (BKIA) in Peshawar early in the morning.
The passengers reached the international lounge where the health officials started receiving test samples. The airport official informed that almost 60 passengers tested positive after undergoing rapid testing.
The passengers protested against the airport administration and demanded another test, which too remained positive. Those infected by the virus were transferred to a quarantine facility being run by Peshawar’s district administration.
“We have been constantly asking the federal government to raise this issue with the UAE authorities and other governments, and to make test reports mandatory for travelling purposes,” the official informed.
This was the second incident of COVID-19 cases reported among the travelers at Peshawar Airport within the last three years. Earlier on Tuesday, 28 passengers returning from Bahrain tested positive for COVID at the same airport.
On Wednesday, almost 32 frontline workers of the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) tested positive for the novel coronavirus at Baccha Khan International Airport.
It is pertinent to mention here that National Command Operation Centre (NCOC) on May 01 devised new protocols for the inbound passengers, imposing a condition of COVID-19 testing at Pakistan airports.
Pakistan had allowed airlines to operate additional 30 percent of flights in a revised policy. Additional flights were allowed to ensure passengers were able to travel abroad without any hindrances.
On May 17, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) revoked a private airline’s flight permit flying from Dubai to Peshawar over violations of the government’s standard operating procedures (SOPs).
The private airline flight had flown 24 coronavirus positive cases from Dubai to Peshawar on May 10. Despite warnings, 27 positive cases were brought to Peshawar from Sharjah again on May 16.
