Karnataka mandates 7-day quarantine for passengers from ’these’ countries

Amid rising cases of Covid-19, especially in the Asian region, the Karnataka government has mandated seven-day home quarantine for passengers coming from high-risk countries. The countries include China, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Thailand, and Hong Kong.

The revised Covid-19 guidelines by the state health department noted that “international travelers from high-risk countries need to be home quarantined for 7 days from the date of their arrival.”

“Once tested positive, the infected people are to be treated and managed as per the State COVID protocol,” the government said in a circular.

If the passengers coming from high-risk countries are found positive for the Covid-19 virus, they will be isolated in the state's designated medical facility and the sample will be sent for genome sequencing, according to the guidelines.

Many countries in the world are exercising increased caution while dealing with incoming travelers from high-risk countries, especially from China. Health experts caution that the relatively relaxed attitude of Chinese authorities is causing inadequate monitoring of Covid-19 cases.

The situation in India is particularly stable and currently, there are no signs of worry. The Indian government is also in action mode as on Saturday it mandated negative Covid RT-PCR reports of passengers prior to their departure from the above countries from 1 January.

Union Ministry of Civil Aviation also directed airlines to modify their check-in systems for passengers arriving from high-risk countries and issue boarding passes only to those passengers who submit a self-declaration form on the Air Suvidha portal.

The Karnataka government is taking all precautionary steps to ensure no sudden rise in Covid-19 cases. Expecting people to come out in large numbers during New Year celebrations, the Karnataka health department made it mandatory for people to wear masks and take Covid-19 precautions while celebrating the festival of New Year.

Currently, the state is reporting 30 to 40 cases daily, according to the health department and the test positivity rate of the state has been around 0.5% to 0.7% for five months.