BENGALURU: The mandatory pre-departure Covid rapid-PCR test for travellers from India to United Arab Emirates in addition to an RT-PCR negative report not older than 48 hours before the journey has put many passengers in hardship.
Apart from bearing the financial burden of two Covid tests, some have been denied boarding despite testing negative in both, on the grounds that their RT-PCR report was more than two days old.
Mohan from HRBR Layout was to take a flight to Dubai from Kempegowda International Airport on Friday. “I underwent an RT-PCR test two days before the flight and paid Rs 1,200. I reached Bengaluru airport six hours before departure and took a rapid-PCR test at a kiosk by paying Rs 3,000. But the airline ground staff didn’t allow me to board stating that the previous 72-hour validity for the RT-PCR report has been altered to 48 hours by the UAE authorities. Me and many other Dubai-bound passengers didn’t even get an alert from the airline,” said the 58-year-old engineer who was forced to reschedule his tickets.
“Even if you test negative in the rapid-PCR test conducted six hours prior to departure at the airport, you still can be denied boarding on the grounds that your previous RT-PCR report has crossed the 48-hour validity period. There is absolutely no logic in this rule which airlines are blindly following,” said Thabassuum, another Dubai-bound passenger who was not permitted to board.
Most affected passengers in Bengaluru and others planning trips to UAE have expressed displeasure on social media, saying the two-test rule applies only to flyers from India and a few other Asian countries, including Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Indonesia.
According to an Air India ground staffer at KIA, arguments with UAE-bound flyers over the test results have become a daily occurrence at check-in counters. “We feel the pre-departure Covid test would be sufficient as passengers landing from Dubai, Sharjah and other airports in UAE will undergo another round of Covid testing and go into home quarantine till the result is sent to them. We expect the UAE government will do away with the double-testing requirement, which will save Indian flyers and ground staff a lot of trouble,” the senior staffer added.
