India on Monday announced that passengers from all 27 European Union countries, all four European Free Trade Association member nations, Turkey and the United Kingdom cannot enter India between March 18 and March 31. This was part of the Indian government’s latest travel advisory issued on Monday amid the growing coronavirus pandemic.
“No airline shall board a passenger from these nations to India with effect from 1200 GMT [5.30 pm Indian time] on 18th March 2020,” the advisory said. “The airline shall enforce this at the port of initial departure.”
The number of coronavirus cases in India rose to 114 on Monday. This included 97 Indians and 17 foreigners. Thirteen of these people have been cured and discharged from hospitals, while two died – one each in Delhi and Karnataka. According to the real-time tracker by Johns Hopkins University in the United States, there were 1,69,387 confirmed cases and 6,513 deaths across the world by 8 pm on Monday. The virus has spread to 146 countries or territories.
The Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare also announced in its advisory that compulsory quarantine for a minimum period of 14 days was extended to passengers from or transiting through the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Oman, and Kuwait from 5.30 pm on March 18.
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