A day after the government issued strict guidelines with regard to the tracing and screening of travellers from the United Kingdom, the Mysuru district administration on Wednesday said surveillance had been stepped up and all precautionary measures are in place.
In the wake of reports of the discovery of new strain of SARS-CoV2 in the U.K., the returnees from Britain are under watch and RT-PCR tests had been made mandatory for them.
A total of 137 people had returned to Mysuru from the U.K. since December 1. They include 119 passengers between December 1 and 20 and 18 travellers on December 21 alone.
Deputy Commissioner Rohini Sindhuri said those who returned on December 21 underwent the COVID-19 test. The swabs of some travellers who had returned before December 20 had been collected and sent for testing.
“All 18 travellers had tested negative to COVID-19,” the Deputy Commissioner said, adding that all those who returned before December 20 must undergo the test.
A separate counter will function at the Town Hall here on Thursday for carrying out the tests of all U.K. returnees. The counter will be operated from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Information had been shared with the returnees by the COVID-19 War Room.
The district administration has made the test mandatory for the contacts of all 137 returnees irrespective of the symptoms. “The test is mandatory to all of them,” Ms. Sindhuri said.
The Deputy Commissioner, in the light of new strain of SARS-CoV2, held a meeting with the health officials on Wednesday and collected information on the steps taken in this connection.
ZP CEO Paramesh, Mysore Medical College and Research Institute Director and Dean Nanjaraj, District Vector Borne Diseases Control Officer Chidambar and other health authorities attended.
The swab samples of 18 travellers testing negative has brought relief to the health authorities.
As many as 4,000 RT-PCR tests are being done in Mysuru district per day. About 600 rapid antigen tests are carried out daily in a bid to contain the virus spread.
In Kodagu and Chamarajnagar too, U.K. returnees had been asked to report to the Health Department in response to the government directives.
Chamarajnagar Deputy Commissioner B.P. Ravi said the district administration and the Health Department have sought the information from the travellers and tourists. “Anybody arriving to the district from Britain and staying in hotels or resorts can report their travel details to the authorities,” he said in a statement here.
Kodagu District Health Officer Mohan said information had been sought about the U.K. travellers. So far, there is no information about the travellers staying in Kodagu. Moreover, there is nobody from Kodagu in the list of travellers sourced from the government. Nevertheless, the department was on alert and issued the advisory, he said.
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