BENGALURU: The detection of two cases of Omicron variant in Karnataka has taken an intriguing turn with one of the patients — a South African traveller — having discreetly moved out of Bengaluru by catching a flight to Dubai.
The Omicron-positive person, a 66-year-old man and representative of Johannesburg-based pharmaceutical company, had left the country in the wee hours of November 27 before the government confirmed his genomic sequencing result.
According to sources, the man arrived from South Africa on November 20 with a Covid-negative report and was tested at the Kempegowda International Airport, Bengaluru.
“That was the time when fears about Omicron had not intensified here,” sources said.
The man checked into a star hotel in Vasanthnagar and, subsequently, his test report for Covid came positive.
Following this, the local health officials visited the hotel and directed him to self-isolate in the room as he was found to be asymptomatic.
On November 22, his samples were collected and sent for genomic sequencing.
The next day (November 23), the man got in touch with the staffers of a private lab in the vicinity and managed to get a Covid-19 negative report.
He showed the negative report to the hotel authorities, checked out, took a cab to the airport and flew to Dubai by catching a early morning flight, sources said.
The local authorities, who were waiting for the genomic sequencing results, went into a tizzy after realising that he had gone missing.
Further inquiries confirmed that he had flown abroad, sources added.
When asked, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike authorities claimed they cannot disclose more on the case at this point.
