Bengaluru: The Karnataka government will track those who have travelled to the state in the last 14 days from countries like the United Kingdom, Netherlands and Denmark, health minister K Sudhakar said on Monday. The decision was announced hours after the central government banned flights from the UK over the detection of a more contagious coronavirus strain in the European country.
The leader said the decision is based on a central government alert cautioning against the virus strain to the state.
"Today we have received a letter from the Government of India regarding precautions at airports. We want to track those who have travelled to Bengaluru and Karnataka, especially from UK, in the last 14 days. We want to request them to undergo the RT-PCR test -- especially those who have arrived from UK, Netherlands and Denmark," he said.
The minister said facilities to monitor people coming from the affected countries will be started at the airports from tomorrow.
He said the standard operating procedure (SOP) against the new strain will remain the same in the state.
"SOPs won't change as the virus hasn't changed much. The only property that has changed in the virus is that it can spread quickly," he said.
England's chief medical officer Chris Whitty confirmed last week that the new coronavirus strain which surfaced in the country could spread faster and called for greater public vigilance to reduce transmission. He said London had informed the World Health Organization of its findings. The revelation had prompted British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announce a "stay at home" order for London and southeast England.
Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan on Monday assured the country that the central government was alert and there was no reason to panic.
"At this time, I would say, don't get hassled with imaginary situations, imaginary talks and imaginary panic. The government is fully alert. In the last one year, as you all have seen, we took all necessary measures to ensure the safety of people. If you ask me, there's no reason to panic so much," he said today.
The ban on flights to and from UK will start from Wednesday and all passengers arriving before will be tested on arrival at airports.
With inputs from agencies