By Express News Service
BENGALURU: As the number people coming from Kerala to Karnataka and testing positive is rising, the worries of management and health officials also climb up.
While the management of the educational and professional institutions are worried about institutional quarantine, health checks, payments and responsibilities associated with it, health officials are worried of the laxity and attitude, which is leading to rising in Covid19 cases and the formation of clusters in the state,
“Cases are not just rising in Dakshin Kannada and Kolar, but now have started to rise in Bengaluru also and the first in line is the Christian College of Nursing in Mahadevapura. This we got to know because of students started showing symptoms and some of their contacts were staying in other places who told neighbours and the word spread. But there are many other colleges and institutions of which data has not yet been shared, despite government orders,” said a senior BBMP official not wanting to be named.
Health department officials have also expressed their worry and have said that those who come from Kerala, do not want to go in for institutional quarantine and assert that they have a negative report. “The management tell us that they believe the reports their students and employees are carrying, but if the government does not believe it and are insisting on IQ, then the government should make all arrangements for it and not put the onus on the management. They are wanting to shun this task under the guise of additional and additional expenditure for them,” said a health department official.
The BBMP and the health department has identified and listed hotel rooms for those coming in from Kerala to undergo IQ. If need be, some are also being sent to Covid care centres.
Another BBMP official said the management does not understand that even if they carry negative test reports, the virus can start acting after 5-7 days. So IQ and an additional test is no harm. This exercise also ensures that the virus does not spread and cases do not rise. They must look at it as a social exercise and not as an obligation. “We also do not know if they have got a genuine test report or a fake report as the cases are rising in Kerala and the same should not happen in Bengaluru or Karnataka,” the official added.