Just as the world was finally getting back on track and breathing free, Covid’s new variant walked in. A new subvariant Covid XE of Omicron was detected in many countries. Hence Karnataka government has been in talks about updating the guidelines for arrivals from these countries. The Health Minister of Karnataka K Sudhakar communicated that they may impose quarantine and adopt other measures as suggested by TAC for travellers arriving from these 8 countries.
Suggestions By TAC
Health minister of Karnataka K Sudhakar communicated the suggestions of the COVID-19 Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) for testing passengers arriving from countries including China, Germany, Hong Kong, New Zealand, South Korea, Thailand and the UK. the suggestions were Thermal screening, strict surveillance and mandatory quarantine for 7-10 days for all the passengers arriving from these 8 countries. The Karnataka government has asked the citizens to wear masks.
IIT Kanpur Had Predicted The Wave
The World Health Organisation had observed in the recent reports that 10% more transmissible than the BA.2 subvariant is the XE subvariant. XE was first detected in the UK on January 19 and about 600 sequences were reported. Karnataka Government is thinking about imposing the guidelines as they do not want to risk the lives of the people in the state. IIT Kanpur had already predicted that June and July will witness another wave of Covid.
Also Read: New Covid-19 Variant IHU Detected In France; More Infectious Than Omicron