Mumbai, March 23: On account of the coronavirus outbreak in India and the rising number of cases, Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has issued guidelines on social distancing to airlines and airport operators. The guidelines come at a time when several states and cities are in lockdown and Indian Railways have also suspended all trains, including passenger, local and metro.

According to the guidelines, the seat allocation at the time of check-in will have to be done in a manner to ensure that the seat between two passengers is kept empty. As part of the guidelines, DGCA requested flyers to keep a distance of minimum one metre at check-in counters, waiting areas and during security checks. The regulatory body also asked authorities to provide sanitisers for staff and passengers at the aircraft gates. In addition to this, the cabin crew will also have to maintain an adequate distance while serving the passengers. Coronavirus Impact on Airlines: GoAir, IndiGo, Air India Announce Salary Cuts, SpiceJet Temporarily Suspends International Operations After Vistara.

 DGCA guidelines for airlines & airports shared by ANI

Facing the heat of COVID-19, airline companies have started introducing cost-cutting measures. Last week, IndiGo Airlines announced salary cuts across the board. Air India had earlier announced the cancellation or reduction in certain allowances that it pays to executive pilots, cabin crew and officers. The total number of COVID-19 positive cases have increased to 415 in India and Maharashtra being the worst affected with a total of 89 cases.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 23, 2020 01:52 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).