COVID-19: K'taka govt orders surveillance measures for passengers arriving from Japan, Thailand
Bengaluru(PTI): Amid fresh COVID-19 concerns, the Karnataka government on Saturday instructed officials to initiate surveillance measures for those arriving from Japan and Thailand, including RT-PCR tests for symptomatic cases at the airport testing laboratory.
Screening, surveillance and tele-monitoring for certain international arrivals have been instructed as per the recommendations of the State COVID-19 Technical Advisory Committee (TAC).
At Bengaluru International Airport and Mangaluru International Airport, the arrivals from the above-mentioned countries should undergo thermal screening upon arrival, a government circular said.
Testing through RT-PCR should be done for the symptomatic persons at the airport testing laboratory and for those found positive, the samples shall be sent for genome sequencing.
Further treatment and management of COVID patients is to be followed as per the state government protocol, it added.
According to the circular, at the district and Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) level, tele-monitoring of the international passengers (from Japan and Thailand) should be done at their respective districts for 14 days through call centre.
If the person develops symptoms during the follow-up period, testing, treatment and management of the case should be taken up as per the protocol by the district teams, and the positive samples shall be sent for genome sequencing.
The circular signed by Principal Secretary to Health and Family Welfare T K Anil Kumar said the COVID-19 situation in Karnataka is well under control, with a daily average of 110 cases and test positivity rate ranging between 0.9 and 1.1 per cent, and currently 2 per cent of international arrivals from designated countries are screened randomly at airports, as per guidelines of the Government of India.
Noting that in view of the recent spurt of COVID-19 cases in China, Australia, Japan, Thailand, Vietnam, New Zealand, Russia and South Korea, further surveillance may be required, it said and added that of the eight countries, direct flight services to Bengaluru are available only from Japan and Thailand. Hence, it is instructed to initiate the following surveillance measures for those arriving from Japan and Thailand.
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Govt to set up Bureau of Port Security to boost port, vessel security
New Delhi (PTI): To beef up the security infrastructure of ports, the government will set up a statutory body -- the Bureau of Port Security -- that will ensure timely analysis, collection and exchange of security-related information of ports and vessels, officials said on Friday.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday convened a meeting for the constitution of the dedicated body, the Bureau of Port Security (BoPS), which was attended by the Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Sarbananda Sonowal, and the Minister of Civil Aviation, Ram Mohan Naidu, an official statement said.
Emphasising that there is a need to establish a country-wide robust port security framework, Shah directed that security measures should be implemented in a graded and risk-based manner, taking into account vulnerabilities, trade potential, location, and other relevant parameters.
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The meeting also noted that lessons learned from the maritime security framework shall be replicated in the aviation security domain, the statement said.
The new body, modelled on the lines of the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS), will be constituted as a statutory body under the new Merchant Shipping Act, 2025, and will work under the aegis of the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways (MoPSW), it said.
Headed by a senior IPS officer as its director general, the BoPS will be responsible for regulatory and oversight functions relating to the security of ships and port facilities.
"During the transition period of one year, the director general of shipping shall function as the director general of BoPS," the statement said.
"The BoPS will ensure timely analysis, collection and exchange of security-related information, with a special focus on cybersecurity, including a dedicated division to safeguard port IT infrastructure from digital threats," it said.
The government has designated the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) as a recognised security organisation (RSO), responsible for undertaking security assessments and preparation of security plans for port facilities.
The Central Armed Police Force (CAPF) will train and build the capacities of private security agencies (PSAs) engaged in port security.
"These agencies shall be certified and appropriate regulatory measures shall be introduced to ensure that only the licensed PSAs operate in this sector," the statement said.
