3 from UK test Covid positive on arrival at Bengaluru airport

Bengaluru: Three international passengers, who arrived from the United Kingdom, including a nine-year-old boy tested positive for Covid-19 at Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) in Bengaluru, Health Department sources said on Wednesday.

The other two, a 25-year-old person and 18-year-old youth, along with the boy, have been shifted to a designated hospital.

The contacts of these persons have been tracked and advised to remain in isolation. Their swab samples have been collected and sent for testing.

Amid the fears of a third wave of Covid-19, the state Health Department is in a battle mode in taking preventive measures as far as arrivals from high-risk countries are concerned.

Since last week, as many as 20 persons, who arrived from different countries, have tested positive for Covid-19.

The results of genome sequencing are awaited for all 20 persons who have arrived from high risk countries on Wednesday. Of them, 12 are being treated at a government-designated hospital and the rest are being treated at private hospitals.

The samples of five primary and 15 secondary contacts of a third Omicron positive patient have also been sent for genome sequencing. All are quarantined and their results are awaited.

Luckily, the Health Department so far has managed to contain the infection from spreading to the community. The administration has a two-pronged strategy -- strict vigilance at the KIA and Mangaluru International airports on international arrivals and thrust on vaccination.