Covid-19 testing begins at Talapady check post

The district administration and health and family welfare department staff have begun testing travellers for Covid-19 at the Talapady check post, bordering Kerala. The staff have been deployed round the clock to work in three shifts, said District Health Officer (DHO) Dr Kishore Kumar.

All those arriving from Kerala should mandatorily produce a negative RT-PCR certificate not older than 72 hours. Those who don't possess the certificate will be tested at the check post by collecting their samples for the RT-PCR test, he told mediapersons in Mangaluru.

All the colleges including paramedical sciences, medical colleges and engineering colleges have been directed to prepare a list of students from Kerala who had arrived in Dakshina Kannada district over the last 17 days. All students from Kerala, irrespective of previous tests, will be screened and their swabs collected for RT-PCR tests.

Nodal officers have been deputed to the colleges to coordinate between the PHCs and colleges. The paramedical colleges attached to the medical colleges have been asked to get the samples tested in the laboratory of the medical college itself, said the DHO.

Daily commuters from Kasargod to Dakshina Kannada should undergo RT-PCR tests once in 14 days.

Stating that the testing at the railway stations in Mangaluru will be continued, the DHO said vaccination certificates are mandatory to enter malls. Even in government offices, all the staff have been directed to get themselves administered with both doses of the vaccine.

Testing will also be continued at the Mangalore International Airport (MIA). Passengers from Kerala and Maharashtra should possess a Covid-19 negative certificate before boarding the flight. If they fail to possess a negative certificate, then they will be tested on their arrival in Mangaluru.

On the new Covid variant Omicron, the DHO said that WHO has declared it as ‘virus of concern.’ The variant reportedly has over 20 mutations in the spike protein region. However, people need not panic, but must adhere to all the Covid-19 guidelines effectively.

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