BELAGAVI: With Karnataka reporting an increase in Covid-19 clusters and the scare of the Omicron variant looming large, the State Government has made it mandatory for all those attending the 10-day winter session of the state legislature at Belagavi’s Suvarna Vidhana Soudha from December 13 to produce RT-PCR negative report not older than 72 hours along with fully-vaccinated certificate before entering the venue.
The session will begin at 10.30 am on December 13. “Every guest, including legislators, officials, media persons and all others entering the venue have to produce an RT-PCR negative report only once. The guests need not have to go for repeated RT-PCR tests,’’ DC Venkateshkumar told TNIE. Health authorities are expected to make separate arrangements for RT-PCR tests for those eligible to attend the session.
Venkateshkumar held a meeting of officials in Belagavi to review the arrangements for accommodation, travel, and boarding made for guests arriving to take part in the session. Several hoteliers also attended the meeting to update the DC on the Covid guidelines in place in their establishments.
The DC said authorities will take measures to ensure that the protocols are followed strictly during the session by providing the required vehicles to ministers, elected representatives, and officials of the Secretariat. Separate WhatsApp groups have been created involving ministers, top officers and their PROs to provide information on facilities provided during the session.