Travellers caught off guard by Karnataka's new Covid-19 rules
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Karnataka : Karnataka's latest Covid-19 rules, which mandate a negative RT-PCR Covid-19 test for those arriving from Maharashtra and Kerala, have blindsided travellers with many having to reschedule their trips, as they couldn't get a test done at the last moment.The state's new rules came into effect Saturday in light of rising coronavirus infections in the neighbouring states. Any person arriving in Karnataka is now required to produce a negative Covid test not older than 72 hours, irrespective of their vaccination status. Earlier, those who have received a single dose could travel without the requirement of a Covid test report.
Weekend lockdowns in Kerala meant swab tests were hard to come by. Thus, many travellers made frantic calls to airlines to check if their ticket was valid without a negative report. Moreover, the Saturday order also asked airlines to not issue a boarding pass to those without a test.
'My Air Asia flight to Bengaluru from Kochi was on Sunday afternoon and I learnt of the order only on Saturday evening,' K Ajayan from Kerala, who works in Bengaluru, told TOI .'Since Kerala remains under weekend lockdown, I couldn't find a lab to take a Covid test on time and I had to postpone my trip to Tuesday,' he said.Following inconvenience to people, several airlines eased rules, extending vaccination certificate norms till the weekend and allowing those without an RT-PCR test to travel. However, from Monday the rules are being implemented strictly and no passenger will be issued a boarding pass without a negative report.
