TEAM HERALD
VASCO: A thermal image scanner (TIS) to screen passengers for symptoms of the deadly Ebola virus disease was shifted from the Goa airport to the Pune airport on September 23, but a senior Dabolim airport official claims he was unaware of the transfer.
According to media reports, the decision to shift the TIS was taken after an activist filed a PIL in the Bombay High Court in September, claiming that India was not yet fully ready to prevent the spread of the Ebola virus.
In his PIL, Ketan Tirodkar, a former journalist and activist, contended that people coming back from Ebola-affected countries arrived at airports in Pune and Nagpur, where Ebola screening facilities were not available.
While hearing the PIL, the Bombay High Court directed Maharashtra government to arrange proper screening facilities in Pune and Nagpur, along the same lines as Mumbai and Delhi airports.
The High Court also instructed the central government to make immediate arrangements to provide TISs at Nagpur and Pune airports, by either getting new scanners or by temporarily shifting the TISs available at unaffected airports.
Accordingly, Pune airport reportedly received a TIS machine from the Goa airport on September 23, to check all incoming passengers, especially those travelling from international destinations, for symptoms of the deadly Ebola virus disease. According to media reports, the TIS was delivered by an Air India Goa-Pune cargo flight and handed over to Pune airport authorities.
A counsel for the central government then confirmed to the Bombay High Court that a TIS had been shifted from the Goa airport to Pune airport.
When asked to justify the need to shift a TIS from Dabolim airport to Pune airport, Dabolim Airport Terminal Manager Anil Thakur said he was unaware that a thermal image scanner had been shifted from Goa airport to Pune airport.
“In fact, during the arrival of the first chartered flight to Dabolim airport, the TIS had been put to use,” said Thakur.
