In a bid to contain the spread of COVID-19, the Kodagu district administration has banned the entry of tourists and the general public to places of tourist importance in the district.
An order issued by Deputy Commissioner Charulatha Somal on Saturday prohibited the entry of tourists until April 20. Kodagu is blessed with many tourist destinations, and many visitors, including those from Kerala, usually throng the sites.
Ms. Somal said any violation of her order was punishable under the Disaster Management Act, 2005, and the Karnataka Epidemic Diseases Act, 2020.
The number of COVID-19 cases in Kodagu has been surging, especially in areas bordering Kerala. The Deputy Commissioner said the infection would spread fast in the district if entry of tourists from the neighbouring State was allowed.
The district administration has taken this decision seeing the possibility of a rise in tourist footfall with a series of holidays in the coming days.
With this, Kodagu has become the first district in the current COVID-19 wave to ban the entry of tourists.
