
Omicron: Health Dept. starts random screening of swab samples of international passengers
The Hindu
The Health Department on Wednesday lifted swab samples of passengers who arrived at the Coimbatore International Airport by Air Arabia flight from Sharjah – the only international service the airport
The Health Department on Wednesday lifted swab samples of passengers who arrived at the Coimbatore International Airport by Air Arabia flight from Sharjah – the only international service the airport has at present.
Airport Director S. Senthil Valavan said that swab samples from 2% of the total passengers were collected for tests on Monday. He said that the flight did not have passengers from any of the 'at-risk' countries. The Air Arabia flight arrived at 3.25 a.m. and it left for Sharjah at 4.15 a.m.
The Coimbatore Medical College Hospital (CMCH) and the Government Medical College and ESI Hospital are among the 12 hospitals close to the airport in the State that have been provided Thermo TaqPath RT-PCR kits to screen swab samples to check whether one of the three target genes namely 'S gene' is detected.

The Ministry of Railways has announced a rationalisation of passenger fares, effective from December 26, aiming to balance rising operational costs while keeping passenger impact minimal. Suburban services and Monthly Season Ticket holders remain unaffected, while ordinary and AC classes see small increases. The move is expected to generate ₹600 crore in revenue and strengthen safety and efficiency across the railway network.












