125 People Onboard A Chartered Flight Test COVID-19 Positive; Passengers Allege 'Conspiracy'

Chaos ensued at an airport in India after 125 passengers onboard a chartered flight from Italy tested positive for COVID-19. The flight had a total of 173 passengers, including 19 children.

The flight, reportedly operated by Portugal-based EuroAtlantic Airways, arrived at the international airport in Amritsar, Punjab, on Thursday. The flight made a technical halt at Tbilisi, Georgia, NDTV reported, citing officials.

On arrival, all adult passengers were tested for COVID-19 as Italy is one of the high-risk countries for Omicron. To the shock of authorities and the passengers alike, 125 passengers tested positive for the virus, The Indian Express reported.

This triggered chaos at the airport with many alleging a "conspiracy." A war of words ensued between officials and the passengers, who claimed all of them had produced COVID-19 negative certificates before boarding the flight.

"They were negative for COVID when they boarded the flight. How could they have turned positive during the eight-hour-long flight? It was mandatory to procure Covid negative reports not older than 72 hours before boarding the flight in Italy. This is impossible," Gurinder Kaur, who came to pick up her husband, told The Indian Express.

The airport plunged into further crisis after ambulances swarmed the airport to take the passengers to a nearby hospital. Police were seen swarming the airport, trying to control the crowd and isolate the passengers.

According to the authorities, 13 passengers were taken to the hospital. "There have been instructions from the government to not allow home isolation for international passengers who test positive. They will be observed and treated at the hospital,” Amritsar Chief Medical Officer Charanjit Singh told the news outlet.

The official also ruled out any conspiracy with regard to the mass positive results. He said there was "no conspiracy" as "there were many who tested negative on board the flight."

This comes as India strengthened testing measures at all its airports after the third wave set in. As per new norms, all passengers from "high risk" countries, which include Italy and the United Kingdom, have to get COVID-19 tests at the airport.

India reported the highest single-day jump Thursday with 495 Omicron cases reported all over the country. Till now, the country has reported 2,630 Omicron cases. It recorded 1,17100 new cases of COVID-19 on Friday.