In a shocking development, a person who landed in Chennai from the UK had confirmed to have contracted the COVID-19 viral infection and the development has come at a high time when the UK has been witnessing the spread of the mutant COVID-19, which haunts the Kingdom and several parts of Europe, sounding an alarm to the nations on the second wave of the pandemic that has been malignantly spreading faster than the novel coronavirus. 

The development has pushed the Tamil Nadu government to deploy precautionary measures to curb the spread of what is feared as the COVID-19 mutant. According to reports close to the developments, Tamil Nadu Health Secretary Radhakrishnan has revealed that one person who landed in Chennai from the UK through New Delhi had tested positive for the COVID-19 infection. 

Being identified as the carrier, the health department has moved that person to the King's Institute in Guindy for further treatment. Radhakrishnan had taken stock of the situation in Chennai Airport and while addressing the reporters, he said that 553 people who came to Chennai from the UK were tested upon their arrival of which one person has tested positive for the COVID-19 and he has been moved for the treatment.

The health secretary has said that his samples were collected and dispatched to Pune for testing to ascertain whether he had contracted the COVID-19 mutant and the government has made RT-PCR test mandatory for every people who arrive from other states and countries. People who arrive from other states and countries will be home quarantined for 96 hours and they will be closely monitored and the government is in the process of tracing the people who arrived from the UK in the past ten days and the Chennai Corporation has been identifying the people and tracing their contacts to contain the spread. 

Speaking to a news agency, Tamil Nadu Health Minister Vijayabaskar said that 1,088 people have landed in Chennai from the UK in the last ten days, and as one person has tested positive, the rest of them are brought under government scrutiny. The health minister appealed to the people not to get panic or fear over the spread of COVID-19 as the government has deployed tight measures and severe precautions to curb the spread. 

According to reports, Chennai will report the first case of COVID-19 mutant in India if the samples of the positive case are confirmed to have contracted the Coronavirus strain. The UK and several other European countries are witnessing the second wave of COVID-19 through the emergence of the mutant with Britain being the epicenter. Though Britain had begun the COVID-19 vaccination drive, the nation was shocked to witness the spread of the mutant Coronavirus, pushing the British government to impose strict lockdown and restrictions. 

On Monday, the Indian government has suspended flights to and from the UK till 11.59 pm on December 31 and this suspension order would be taking effect from 11.59 pm on December 22 and people arriving in India directly from the UK or through the transit flights till December 22 will be subjected to a mandatory RT-PCR COVID-19 test on arrival at the Indian airports. The decision of the Indian government to suspend flights from the UK has come when nearly 27 countries, including France, Germany, and Canada, had suspended flights from the UK. 

The British Government has admitted the widespread of the mutant and issued a warning that the potent new strain of the virus is getting out of control in the country. The government has imposed a tight lockdown and issued a new stay-at-home order from Sunday. Addressing the media on Monday, Indian Health Minister Dr.Harsh Vardhan asserted that the government is fully alert and there is no need to panic and that the government had done everything important to handle the COVID-19 situation in the last one year.

Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said, "Those found positive on arrival should be sent for institutional quarantine set by the state and UT governments, in collaboration with the states/UTs concerned. Those found negative should be advised to isolate at home for 7 days & will be medically monitored by the States/UTs".