COVID-19: Enforcement staff towork in three shifts from today

Amidst fresh scare, Chamarajanagar DC deputes staff for 24 x 7 surveillance at Punajanur checkpost

Amidst the fresh pandemic scare, Chamarajnagar Deputy Commissioner Charulatha Somal has appointed additional staff at the 24 x7 interstate checkpost at Punajanur. The aim is to step up surveillance on those entering the State for preventing cross-border transmission.

The DC has asked the staff to work in three shifts at the checkpost with heightened surveillance, enforcing the fresh guidelines issued by the government in the wake of the detection of Omicron strain of Coronavirus.

The staff will work from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.; 2 p.m. to 8 p.m. and 8 p.m. to 8 a.m., from Wednesday onwards.

Ms. Somal has told the staff to strictly comply with the rules and enforce the directions issued by the district administration.

The DC has instructed the tahsildars and senior officers to conduct inspections of the checkpost and monitor COVID-19 surveillance.

Meanwhile, the surveillance at the Bavali checkpost on the Kerala border in Mysuru district has been stepped up. RT-PCR negative report not older than 72 hours is mandatory to enter the State.

Deputy Commissioner Bagadi Gautham said all precautions have been taken to prevent cross-border transmission of the disease with the staff scanning the QR code in the lab reports to check the authenticity of the reports.

On the allegations of travellers using “fake negative” certificates to gain entry into the State, he said, “The reports are examined carefully and the QR code is scanned to get to know the accuracy of the reports.”

Mysuru, Chamarajnagar and Kodagu share their borders with Kerala and the district administrations had taken tough measures to screen the travelers during the second wave, with strict checking of the negative reports.

The nursing students from Kerala who have returned to Mysuru for studies have to undergo RT-PCR test on the 7th day of their return, irrespective of having the negative report on their arrival here, according to Mysuru district administration. This decision comes in the wake of several nursing students testing positive to COVID-19 here recently, amidst the new scare. In the past too, several nursing students belonging to Kerala who were studying in colleges in Mysuru had got infected.