MANGALURU: In view of the delta plus variant being reported in a few districts of Kerala, the Karnataka government has sounded a high alert in the bordering districts of Dakshina Kannada, Kodagu, Mysuru and Chamarajanagar. Hence, RT-PCR negative certificates not older than 72 hours should be compulsorily produced by passengers coming from Kerala by flight, bus, train, taxi, personal transport etc.
A consortium of laboratories for whole genome sequencing in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic (INSACOG) has intimated that the delta plus variant of the virus, which is currently a variant of concern, has been reported in some districts in Kerala. Keeping this in mind, the state government has directed districts bordering Kerala including Dakshina Kannada to take special surveillance measures for persons arriving from Kerala with immediate effect for implementation.
Airlines have been directed to issue boarding passes only to passengers carrying RT-PCR negative certificates not older than 72 hours. Railway authorities will be responsible for ensuring that all passengers travelling by trains carry negative RT-PCR certificates. The Dakshina Kannada deputy commissioner has been directed to make arrangements to deploy necessary staff at checkposts to ensure that people in all vehicles (drivers and passengers) entering the district are checked for RT-PCR negative certificates. Also, it is mandatory for students and the public visiting the district daily for education, business and other reasons to undergo RT-PCR once in 15 days and possess a negative test report.
Exemptions for negative RT-PCR report
People with a certificate indicating they have received both doses of the Covid-19 vaccine, healthcare professionals and children below two years will be exempted from producing a negative report. Also, in dire emergency situations like death in the family, medical treatment etc, the passenger's swab will be collected on arrival in the district with necessary details like phone number, address etc duly verifying from the ID card. On receipt of the RT-PCR test report, further action will be taken as per the state protocol. Any person violating these measures will be liable to be booked under the Karnataka Epidemic Diseases Act 2020, Disaster Management Act, 2005.