Bengaluru, Nov. 28: A day after two South African passengers tested Covid positive on their arrival in the city, Karnataka chief minister, Basavaraj Bommai on Sunday appealed to the Union Government to impose a travel ban on passengers coming from South Africa, Hong Kong and Botswana where new strain of Covid virus Omicron is detected and spreading rampantly there.
Bommai told reporters that already European nations have imposed restrictions and the WHO has also raised an alarm against this new variant by calling it a matter of concern after a new variant Omicron was detected mainly in South Africa, Hong Kong and Botswana.
“We have also requested the Union government to impose a travel ban on all passengers arriving from these three countries South Africa, Hongkong and Botswana,” he said.
Bommai said that though India is on the alert as Prime Minister Narendra Modi had already convened a meeting and given several directions. “After PM’s meeting, we too had convened a meeting on Saturday in the state. I have issued fresh restrictions at the airport for people coming from countries, which are in contact with people from nations where the new Omicron variant has been detected and so far we have not detected the new strain in the state,” he clarified.
The CM conceded that there was high prevalence of Covid among people coming from Kerala, hence, he has ordered precautionary measures in Dakshina Kannada, Madikeri, Chamarajanagar and Mysuru districts bordering Kerala, which will be in effect round-the-clock.
He also said people who came from Kerala in the last 14 days will have to undergo tests again.
On the rising cases in some clusters in Dharwad, Bengaluru and Mysuru, he said “We are taking all precautionary measures including conducting tests in SDM Medical College, testing doctors, nurses, patients and others too. We have also stopped the entry of outpatients. Apart from testing, we are also strictly monitoring and treating those patients too.”
Worried over slow uptake of second anti-Covid vaccine dose, Bommai said that the state government was also contemplating to arrange vaccination camps in malls and other public places apart from government hospitals to accelerate vaccination drive in the state.
He added that Karnataka’s first dose coverage stands at 91 per cent at present which is reaching its saturation point from here on and now onwards the state’s focus will be administering second dose. “We are aiming to achieve 70 per cent vaccination by December-end. Presently we have reached 58 per cent. Also there is no shortage of stock as the state has 80 lakh vaccine doses in its stock,” he claimed.
The CM said that the state was also planning to write a letter to the Union Government seeking a permission to administer booster doses to the frontline workers (those who were inoculated beginning of this year (January 16 onwards).
