Daijiworld Media Network – Mangaluru (DV)

Mangaluru, Jul 31: A few districts in the state along the Kerala and Maharashtra border are witnessing a steady increase in the number of Covid-19 cases, becoming a cause of concern among authorities in the state.

Hence, Karnataka government on Saturday July 31, issued special surveillance measures for the arrivals from Kerala and Maharashtra.

The state Health department had earlier given instructions to some districts to take stern measures to contain the numbers.

Checkpost at Talapady (file photo)

The following measures have been issued by the state government to be followed by district administrations:

1. The special surveillance measures issued from the office of the secretariat, government of Karnataka stated that persons arriving from Kerala and Maharashtra , should produce a negative RT- PCR certificate, (which is not older than 72 hours) irrespective of vaccination status.
2. The above condition is mandatory for all the passengers coming to Karnataka by flight, bus, train and personal transport. This is applicable for all the flights originating from Kerala & Maharashtra.
3. Airlines shall issue boarding passes only to the passengers carrying RT-PCR negative certificate not older than 72 hours.
4. Railway Authorities shall be responsible for ensuring that all passengers travelling by trains carry negative RT-PCR certificates.
5. For all the passengers travelling by bus, the bus conductor shall ensure that they possess RT-PCR negative certificates.
6. Deputy Commissioners of the Districts bordering Kerala i.e., Dakshina Kannada, Kodagu & Mysuru and Maharashtra i.e., Belagavi, Vijayapura, Kalaburagi and Bidar shall establish check posts & make arrangements to deploy necessary staff to ensure that all the vehicles (driver, passengers, helper / cleaner) entering Karnataka are checked for the compliance of the above requirement.
7. It is mandatory for students & public visiting Karnataka daily for education, business & other reasons, to undergo RT - PCR test once in 15 days & possess the negative test report.

Permitted exemptions for negative RT-PCR certificate are as follows:

1. Constitutional functionaries and healthcare professionals
2. Children below 2 years.
3. In dire emergency situations (death in the family, medical treatment etc.,) the passenger's swab shall be collected on arrival in Karnataka with necessary details like phone number, address etc, duly verifying from their lD card. On receipt of the RT-PCR test report, further action will be taken as per the State protocol.