The Karnataka government on Tuesday said incoming passengers from the UK, Europe and the Middle East no longer need to wait after undergoing an RT-PCR test at Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru. The same relaxations will apply to travelers entering the state via other entry points. However, passengers arriving from South Africa and Brazil will be required to wait at the airport until their samples return negative, even if they have a negative RT-PCR test result from the country of their travel origin.

A revised circular was issued to this effect by Karnataka Additional Chief Secretary Health Javaid Akhtar on Tuesday. Earlier incoming travellers from the UK, Europe and the Middle East had to mandatorily undergo RT-PCR tests even if they carried a negative test report from their country of travel origin. The circular issued by the Additional Chief Health Secretary said that revisions in the regulations have been taken as per the recommendations of the state-level  COVID-19 Technical Advisory Committee. 

This change comes at a time when Karnataka has been witnessing a drop in COVID-19 cases. The state reported 1,259 cases and 29 deaths on Tuesday, taking the total number of infections to 29,41,026 and the toll to 37,184. The day also saw 1,701 discharges, taking the total number of recoveries so far to 28,84,032.

Out of 1,259 new cases reported, 295 were from Bengaluru Urban, as the city saw 371 discharges and 11 deaths. The total number of active cases in the state stood at 19,784. While the positivity rate for the day stood at 0.65%, the Case Fatality Rate (CFR) was 2.30%.

Of the 29 deaths reported on Tuesday, 11 were from Bengaluru Urban, Dakshina Kannada and Uttara Kannada had four each, while Hassan and Mandya each logged two fatalities, followed by others.