Officials stopped 70 workers who tried to enter Belagavi district through minor village roads, at Murgod village near Nippani on Saturday night.
They had passes issued by the Pune City Municipal Corporation and some district officers. But they had not undergone tests for COVID-19.
They had come in two buses from Pune and nearby areas.
As many as 22 passengers alighted from one bus in Linganur village and 37 got off from another bus near Murgod village. They walked around 10 km to reach Nippani town, after avoiding the inter-State border check-post.
When a villager noticed this, he informed the police. The police found out that they had no documents showing that they had undergone COVID-19 test. Officers stationed them in a school in Murgod village and provided them food. Some of the workers are taking shelter under trees on the roadside.
They are from Raichur, Kalaburagi, Yadgir and Bagalkot districts. They include women and children.
Shankarappa Yamanappa, one of the workers, said that they had been walking from Pune and nearby areas to Karnataka.
“Maharashtra officers stopped us near Kagal village. They made us get into buses and dropped us at the border,” he said. He demanded that the Karnataka government help them reach their villages. “We have not committed any mistake. We only demand that we be sent home,” he said.
Deputy Commissioner S.B. Bommanahalli said that the workers would be sent home after medical tests and other due procedure.
Local officers will conduct their tests and help them register their names on the sevasindhu portal, the Deputy Commissioner said. Buses would be arranged to their villages in a few days, according to him.