The Karnataka government on Saturday made it mandatory for travellers from Kerala and Maharashtra to produce a negative RT-PCR test not older than 72 hours to enter the state. The rule applies irrespective of the traveller’s vaccination status.
“[The negative certificate] is mandatory for all the passengers coming to Karnataka by flight, bus, train and personal transport,” the circular issued by Additional Chief Secretary (Health and Family Welfare) Jawaid Akhtar said. “This is applicable for all flights originating in Kerala and Maharashtra. Airlines should issue boarding passes only to passengers carrying RT-PCR negative certificates not older than 72 hours.”
Railway authorities have been told to ensure that all passengers travelling by trains carry a negative RT-PCR certificate. “For all the passengers travelling by bus, the bus conductor shall ensure that they possess RT-PCR negative certificates,” the circular stated.
The state government has ordered all deputy commissioners of districts bordering Kerala (Dakshina Kannada, Kodagu and Mysuru) and Maharashtra (Belagavi , Vijayapura, Kalaburagi and Bidar) to establish check posts and make arrangements to deploy necessary staff to ensure that all vehicles entering Karnataka are checked.
Karnataka on Friday reported 1,890 Covid cases and 34 deaths. With this, the state’s coronavirus tally since the beginning of the pandemic rose to 29,03,137, while the toll stands at 36,525.
Karnataka has relaxed certain restrictions within the state as Covid-19 cases have reduced. From July 19, the state government allowed cinema theatres to open and reduced the duration of night curfew by an hour, NDTV reported. Colleges and universities were allowed to hold offline classes from July 26.
Kerala and Maharashtra are among the states with the most cases in India. Kerala reported 20,772 Covid-19 cases on Friday, and its most recent weekly average cases have been above 20,000, The News Minute reported. Maharashtra reported 6,600 Covid-19 cases on Friday.
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