India’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has made it mandatory for passengers travelling to India to complete a self-declaration form prior to departure, as part of updated standard operating procedures (SOPs) linked to public health surveillance measures.
According to the SOP, airline passengers must submit details of their health status through the Self Declaration Form (SDF), a measure intended to support early detection of potential infectious diseases and strengthen monitoring at Indian airports.
The guidelines have been introduced in connection with the World Health Organization’s declaration of a global health emergency related to an Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), according to the SOP by authorities.
Under the new measures, passengers are expected to report any symptoms during travel, while airlines are required to inform passengers about relevant symptoms during the flight. Travelers arriving from, or transiting through, affected regions may also be required to provide travel history and health information.
Airport terminals handling international arrivals will use thermal screening to check passengers for fever as part of enhanced surveillance procedures.
Maldivian, the national carrier, has informed passengers of the requirement, noting that the Self Declaration Form is available through its website.
Passengers are required to complete the form prior to travel and submit it to health and immigration counter upon arrival in India.
Health authorities in India have reportedly conducted screening of individuals for Ebola-related symptoms, with precautionary quarantine measures in place for monitoring purposes.
Ebola is a severe, often fatal viral hemorrhagic fever causing widespread inflammation, organ damage, and dangerous internal or external bleeding and can take up to 21 days for symptoms to appear.
Health authorities have warned that the strain circulating in the DRC has no approved vaccine. According to health officials, a total of 263 deaths have been recorded in the current outbreak, with 128 confirmed to be directly caused by the Ebola virus.
