OTTAWA – Canada has suspended all flights from India and Pakistan for one month in an effort to halt the spread of COVID-19.
All commercial and private-passenger flights are impacted in the order, which went into effect on Thursday night.
Passengers who travel from India or Pakistan to Canada via an indirect route during the moratorium will be required to obtain a negative COVID-19 pre-departure test from a third country before being allowed into Canada.
India reported more than 315,000 new cases on Wednesday, a single-day global record.
Health Minister Patty Hajdu said the decision was made based on the science.
“Throughout this pandemic, we have adapted our response to emerging science with one goal in mind: protecting Canadians. This is what we are doing again today. We have established some of the strongest border measures in the world, to test, screen, and quarantine incoming travelers,” Hajdu said in a release issued by the federal government.
“With the current pressure on hospitals and health care workers, we also need to reduce our contacts and avoid crowded places more than ever.”
Of the 274,822 Day 1 test results for international air and land travelers between Feb. 22 and April 19, 3,732, or 1.4 per cent, tested positive.
