Karnataka makes 7-day home isolation mandatory for Covid patients, all contacts also to be tested

The government of Karnataka has made it mandatory for all individuals who test positive for Covid-19 to remain in home isolation for a period of seven days. Additionally, all symptomatic primary contacts of these individuals will also be tested. This decision was taken by a cabinet sub-committee on Covid-19, chaired by health minister Dinesh Gundu Rao, during their meeting at Vidhana Soudha on Tuesday. The government will soon release guidelines regarding this matter.

Starting from Tuesday, the state of Karnataka has planned to conduct 5,000 Covid tests every day. The sub-committee has decided that employees of both government and private companies who are under home isolation should be granted seven days of leave. Doctors and staff from UPHCs/Namma Clinics will regularly visit individuals in home isolation and general ward Covid admissions. Those in ICUs will be monitored through tele-ICU from the state headquarters.

Currently, there are no restrictions on New Year celebrations or interstate travel. However, it is advised that people wear masks in public places. Senior citizens and individuals with comorbidities are required to wear masks, and parents are advised not to send their children to school if they have symptoms such as fever, cold, or cough until the symptoms subside. It has also decided to administer "precautionary vaccine" for the aged and those with comorbidities.


The central government will provide Karnataka with 30,000 doses of Covid vaccines, which will be distributed to taluk and district hospitals for administration. Priority will be given to individuals with comorbidities. In addition, healthcare workers will also be administered flu vaccines.

To further enhance healthcare facilities, the sub-committee has decided to create separate Covid-19 wards in all district hospitals and government medical colleges across the state. Dedicated Covid wards will also be established at Victoria Hospital and Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Chest Diseases in Bengaluru.

For better monitoring and analysis, an adequate number of samples will be sent to designated labs such as the National Centre for Biological Sciences in Bengaluru and the National Institute of Virology in Pune for whole genome sequencing. The State Death Audit Committee will study and identify the underlying causes of Covid deaths and recommend corrective measures.

Furthermore, the sub-committee has prohibited the use of CT scans for suspected Covid cases. They should only be used for confirmed cases. These decisions were made based on the recommendations of the Covid-19 Technical Advisory Committee led by Dr K Ravi.