Corona scare brings out the bias in flyers

TNN | 14 February 2020 | Kolkata: Flying in the times of novel coronavirus is proving to be a trying experience for a section of passengers and cabin crew despite the disease not showing signs of going viral in India as yet.

A section of flyers, jittery over contracting the disease that has prompted lockdown in Chinese cities and curbs on entry of Chinese citizens into India, has responded “unusually”, some going to the extent of trying to avoid fellow passengers with Mongoloid features.

A flyer on a Thursday night Delhi-Kolkata IndiGo flight refused to sit next to a traveller from Arunachal Pradesh after the latter sneezed once. He then stood in the aisle, insisting that his seat be changed. Luckily, there was an empty seat a few rows ahead where the cabin crew accommodated him.

These demands have spiked after February 7, when a Chinese national on board a Delhi-Pune Air India flight was hospitalised to rule out that he had contracted Covid-19 (the disease caused by the novel coronavirus), say cabin crew and officials of several airlines. “There is some amount of stereotyping going on. It is unfortunate and we are asking flyers to be reasonable,” one of them said.

“It is a problem when a flight is full. Such a situation may even lead to a flight being delayed,” a flight attendant with a private carrier, who received two such requests in the past three days, added.

An Air India commander said he had to intervene on a couple of occasions after being approached by the cabin crew. “I had to explain that the flyer in the next seat was an Indian with no connection to China,” he said.

What has complicated the situation more is this is also the season of the common flu, cough and cold. “Even I had a sore throat and coughed when I spoke to the passenger who was being paranoid. But the paranoid passenger did not notice that,” the commander said.

A stewardess from Shillong said she had seen passengers whip out masks and wear them when they found that the next-seat passenger was from her part of the country. “I find the behaviour of some passengers embarrassing though they may want to hurt others’ feelings,” she said.

“It is as though anyone with features like me is prone to Covid-19. The manner in which some people behave is ridiculous,” Mizo businesswoman Mapuii Kawilam said.

The problem is less evident on flights to Guwahati, Imphal or Dimapur, perhaps because flyers from the rest of the country are conscious that many travellers will be from the north-east.

Some airlines have made it clear that “unreasonable requests” may lead to flyers be de-boarded. “Under no circumstances can we ask passengers to leave only because someone else suspects they may be ill,” an airline spokesperson said. Doctors say awareness and caution are welcome but irrational fear is uncalled for. “It’s common for someone to suffer from cough, cold or fever. It is then advisable to use a handkerchief while coughing or sneezing,” physician Debashish Saha said.