Karnataka imposes restrictions on travel from Kerala amid Covid spike in B'luru

The Karnataka government has imposed restrictions of travel on those coming from neighbouring Kerala after two Covid-19 clusters were reported in the city.

One of the clusters was reported in nursing college, which had 70 per cent of its students from Kerala, this is said to have resulted in the new clusters

The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) is on its toes after 42 students from nursing college in RT Nagar and 103 residents of an apartment in Bommanhalli tested positive. This comes as the city was witnessing a decline in the number of cases reported per day

While on Monday, BBMP has called the two clusters ‘isolated incidents’ by Tuesday the civic authority made an RT-PCR negative certificate mandatory from anyone coming from Kerala and held a meeting with city's residents' welfare associations (RWAs).

New Restrictions

“All those arriving from Kerala and checking into hotels, resorts, hostels, homestays, dormitories, etc. shall compulsorily produce a negative RT-PCR certificate that is not older than 72 hours. Owners of the above-mentioned places should ensure that the occupants produce a negative RT-PCR certificate,” read the latest circular from the Karnataka government.

It further added that those who have arrived from Kerala in the past two weeks in Karnataka shall compulsorily be subjected to RT- PCR test.

“The students from Kerala who reside in the hostels shall avoid frequently travelling to their native place unless it is strongly justified. Such students returning from Kerala shall bring a negative RT-PCR test report that is not more than 72 hours old. The employees from working in multi-national companies, Hotels, resorts, Lodges, homestays in Karnataka, should get the RT PCR test done at their own cost,” the circular added.

Apart from these restrictions, the government has decided to declare any hostels, boarding or residential ,educational institutions with a cluster of five or more cases, a containment zone.

Residents should not be allowed to have visitors or relatives on campus in educational institutes without obtaining permission from the Covid nodal officers and a list of students travelling to and from Kerala to hostels and colleges should be maintained by a competent authority, read the circular.

New Clusters

After a long gap of four months, a cluster was reported in Bengaluru. 42 students of Manjushree College of nursing in RT Nagar tested positive for the virus on Saturday. Eighteen students from this college have been admitted to Victoria Hospital for treatment, while the remaining students have been asked to self-isolate in the hostel.

A day after that BBMP commissioner N Manjunatha Prasad visited the college and ordered that the campus be sealed.

The BBMP commissioner said in the second cluster in SNN Raj Lake View apartment, the number of cases shot up to 103 on Tuesday. “We tested 1,058 residents of the apartment complex and 103 have tested positive. Ninety of these patients are over 60 years of age. However, many of them are asymptomatic, they are constantly monitored, and necessary medical care is being provided,” said Prasad.

According to him, a function held in the apartment’s clubhouse was a catalyst in the spike. He said the event acted as a ‘super spreader’. He said that six BBMP teams have been deployed in the apartment complex to test the remaining residents.

“There is a concern, but no panic. We will get over this,” he said.

Prasad spoke with RWAs in the city via video conferencing on Tuesday morning. He said that the emergence of the clusters is a wakeup call for Bengaluru.

During the meeting, he appealed to the RWAs to act as a watchdog for the BBMP to keep a check on all those with Covid-like symptoms.

The civic agency chief also asked apartment residents not to organise any closed-door functions because an infected person could be a super spreader in case a function is organised in an air-conditioned environment. In case of open-air events, social distancing and masks should be mandatory, he added.

“Bengaluru has come a long way in the fight against Covid by bringing the numbers from 6,000 cases per day to 100-200 cases per day. We want to contain any further spread. He said there is no need for panic,” he said.

He also asked apartments to regulate outsiders coming into buildings.