People entering Odisha without negative RT-PCR report, vaccination certificate to go under self-quarantine

BHUBANESWAR: In an effort to maintain the crowd amid the surge of the COVID-19 pandemic, the East Coast Railway and Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation have tightened up the surveillance at the railway station. The people coming to the state without a negative RT-PCR report or vaccination certificate are being asked to go under self-quarantine.

Elaborating the arrangements made at the Bhubaneswar Railway Station, the station director, Chittaranjan Nayak told ANI, "We are collecting details of those coming from out of the state and do not have negative RT-PCR report, we ask them to self-quarantine. Those who have not taken both the doses of the COVID-19 vaccine are being registered."

"We have set up six counters in a larger area to avoid overcrowding of passengers," he added.

"Those who have taken both the doses of COVID-19 vaccine can also travel, by following the pandemic protocols like wearing face masks and social distancing," the station master further said.

The Odisha government on Monday started strictly implementing its decision of not allowing any people to enter the state without a COVID-19 negative report or the final vaccination certificate.

The government has made it mandatory for all passengers entering the state by railways to carry negative RT PCR (Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction) report that is not older than 72 hours.

Odisha's COVID-19 tally surged to 3,55,353 on Tuesday as 2,267 more people tested positive for the infection. The number of total active cases mounted to 12,244.