23 people test COVID positive at Tibetan settlement camp in Karnataka

A Tibetan camp in Mysuru, Karnataka, was sealed on Thursday after at least 23 residents there tested positive for COVID-19.

A health officer has visited the Tibetan Lama Camp in Bylakuppe to take stock of the situation. Directions have been given to officers at the settlement to initiate further precautions to contain the spread of the coronavirus.

Bylakuppe is the second largest Tibetan settlement in the world outside Tibet after Dharamshala, in Himachal Pradesh. It is located 80 kilometres away from Mysuru City. The settlement has a number of monasteries and temples in all the major Tibetan Buddhist traditions, which attract a large number of tourists across India. Authorities are on high alert following the outbreak of COVID.

Instructions have now been given to health officers to conduct RT-PCR tests on those who return from Sabarimala trip in Kerala, especially in villages of Mysuru district. The officers are also directed to monitor those persons for 10 days as the COVID infection rate is still high in Kerala.

Meanwhile, the Karnataka government issued another circular on Wednesday making it mandatory for international arrivals from high-risk countries to get the RT-PCR test done in the premises of the KempeGowda International Airport, Mangaluru International Airport, and other airports in the state.