Karachi, Pakistan,

A single flight from a gulf country has brought 48 passengers, who have tested positive for Covid-19 upon their arrival in Karachi. The health authorities fear they might carry the Indian variant, reported news Tv channel on Friday.

According to sources, 48 passengers who boarded a flight to Karachi from Oman were reported positive when  their rapid corona tests were conducted at the airport. The health authorities suspect the positive passengers might be carrying the most deadly Indian variant as they were coming from a Gulf country where a large number of the Indian were living.

The health authorities have sent their samples of corona tests to the laboratory for examining in details. However, most of the positive passengers from the district south and east of Karachi. Some positive cases belong to Larkana and Hyderabad. While the rest from other parts of the country.

Earlier, the proteins sequencing was done on the returnees of Iraq and Oman who were positive and it was found that they were carrying the Indian variant.

The authorities stressed to keep a vigilant eye on people who are coming down here from abroad. The authorities have restricted these travelers at their homes so that they would not spread the virus in the community.

The India variant is the fastest spreading and most aggressive kind of coronavirus as its transfer rate is extremely high.

The Ministry of National Health Services has asked the airlines to strictly implement SOPs for inbound travelers, including presenting a mandatory test report from an authentic lab in the country of origin. The government has also conducting the rapid testing’s of international travelers to curb the spread of the virus.

The ministry has further urged the general public to strictly observe advised precautionary measures to protect themselves. The government is also gear up its vaccination campaign to control this pandemic.

On Tuesday, Sindh Health Secretary Kazim Jatoi confirmed the existence of five cases in the province infected by the Indian variant.

Four cases belonged to Karachi and one belonged to Ghotki. Three Iraq returnees and one Muscat returnee had brought the Indian variant in Sindh, health secretary added.

The provincial government was following the trace and track policy to rapid curb the spread.

This post was originally published on VOSA.