Airports step up vigil against SARS

NEW DELHI: With the SARS scare spreading its tentacles across India, health and airport authorities here have intensified the screening process for all in-bound passengers. The authorities have increased the number of screening booths at the IGI airport to six and also deputed additional doctors and nurses to monitor the passengers.
Even Union defence minister George Fernandes and his official delegation, which returned here on Sunday night after a week-long visit to China, were thoroughly screened at the IGI airport for SARS, airport director PS Nair said. The minister said he was also checked for SARS at Shanghai before leaving for India.
"We have intensified our drive and have even put up special banners at the airport asking passengers to voluntarily declare any symptoms resembling SARS," Nair said.
Arriving international passengers have to fill up a special form, wherein they are to declare whether they had any fever and other symptoms such as headache, congestion and cough. These forms are issued on-board. "In addition, we have now set up six health counters, which are manned by a doctor each deputed by the Directorate General Health Services (DGHS).�

Passengers are required to report to the health counters before proceeding to the immigration counters. Besides providing preventive respiratory masks to all doctors, immigration and customs officials, the DGHS has also imparted a crash training programme to all airport staff to enable them to identify SARS-infected patients.