The Odisha government has made it mandatory for people to show their COVID-19 negative report or a complete vaccination certificate to enter the state. The new guidelines were issued in a bid to control the rising number of Coronavirus cases. People coming to Odisha will now have to produce either a negative RT-PCR test report not older than 72 hours or a final vaccination certificate after two doses of vaccination.
The rule will be applied on all modes of travel, train, bus, aeroplane, waterways or private vehicles. The new guidelines also mentions if a person comes without these required reports or certificates, he/she will have to undergo seven days of mandatory home or institutional quarantine effective from April 12.
The government has also suspended all public transport from Odisha to Chhattisgarh and vice versa till April 30. Border checkpoints (BCPs) will be created at strategic locations to manage the entry of incoming vehicles.
Though the Covid-19 situation in Odisha is not alarming, officials said the cross border movements of people may worsen the situation in almost all border districts of Odisha. There has been a significant surge in Covid-19 cases in Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh.
