Show-cause notice to 2 airlines for allowing passengers to board flights without filling self-declaration forms

Indian authorities on Wednesday issued show-cause notices to Air India and Vistara for not complying with passenger boarding guidelines issued by the Center following the emergence of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus, a PTI report said.

Four international passengers, one in Air India and three from Vistara, were allowed to board flights without filling their self-declaration forms (SDF), they said.

According to the guidelines issued by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on November 30, airlines are directed to allow boarding to only those international passengers who have filled up their personal details on the Air Suvidha portal and uploaded the negative RT-PCR test report.

The Vasant Vihar sub-divisional magistrate under the New Delhi district has asked the deputy general manager of Air India and the airport manager of Vistara to respond to the show-cause notices within 24 hours “without fail”.

“Non-compliance shall be viewed seriously, and it would be presumed that the station manager has nothing to say in the matter and action as deemed fit shall be initiated as per relevant provisions of the Disaster Management Act, 2005; Section 188 of IPC and other applicable laws,” read the notice, PTI reported.