India: Telangana State enforcing enhanced restrictions May 12-21 amid increasing COVID-19 activity /update 26

Event

Authorities in southern India continue to adjust COVID-19 controls as of May 11. Telangana officials will implement tighter restrictions across the state May 12-21. Karnataka authorities are enforcing a statewide ban on nonessential activity through 06:00 May 25. Officials in Tamil Nadu are also restricting nonessential activity through 04:00 May 24, while Puducherry authorities are enacting similar measures through 23:59 May 24. Nightly curfews are also currently active in other areas of southern India, such as Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Andhra Pradesh State. Emergency and essential activity, as well as cargo transit, and permitted industries, are allowed during curfews. However, transport and delivery services may be limited to essential purposes.

Other COVID-19 controls continue across southern India through May 31 per central government guidelines. Authorities have banned all social and public gatherings, except for permitted events, such as weddings and funerals. Strict curbs on nonessential activity will continue in areas with a significant number of COVID-19 cases. Under these measures, movement from affected areas remains restricted only to select transit points and for essential purposes. All public transport and nonessential private transport remain banned. Businesses - mainly those providing essential services - may operate with minimal numbers of employees. Residents must stay home and use delivery services to the extent possible. Additional statewide measures are possible due to increased disease activity.

Businesses, transport services, and most public sites outside of containment zones are operational with social distancing measures; educational institutions are largely closed. International travel is limited to approved charter and commercial flights connecting "air bubble" destinations. Due to concerns about new COVID-19 strains, officials are also implementing enhanced health monitoring and on-arrival or post-arrival testing requirements for international arrivals within at least the past seven days. Such measures are likely to mainly affect passengers from the identified high-risk locations of Brazil, Europe, the Middle East, South Africa, and the UK.

As of May 11, existing or planned measures include:

• Andaman and Nicobar: A modified overnight curfew is active 21:00-05:00 regionwide until further notice. Social gatherings, recreational facilities, and tourist sites remain banned through May. Public transport will run with 50-percent passenger capacity, while autorickshaws and taxis may carry two passengers. Enhanced restrictions apply in South Andaman District, where most businesses must close by 18:00. All incoming air passengers must carry negative results of a reverse transcription-polymerase chain (RT-PCR) COVID-19 test taken within 48 hours prior to departure; they will also undergo free rapid antigen testing upon arrival. All entrants to the union territory and freight vehicle operators on interdistrict trips along National Highway 4 (NH 4) must either produce negative results of an RT-PCR test for COVID-19 taken within 48 hours before departure from the origin point or undergo paid rapid antigen testing upon arrival. Only pre-approved essential travelers with RT-PCR test results may enter or transit tribal areas - comprising the Jarawa tribal reserve in the south and Middle Andaman, Little Andaman, Nicobar District, and Rangat Tehsil - to protect tribal populations from COVID-19 outbreaks. Home quarantine of seven days and institutional quarantine of 10 days is mandatory for asymptomatic entrants to the region and tribal areas, respectively.

• Andhra Pradesh: Authorities are imposing a statewide curfew 12:00-06:00 daily through at least May 18. All commercial establishments, educational institutions, and restaurants must close during the curfew; authorities are only exempting hospitals and other medical facilities and essential services from the curfew. District officials are banning large public gatherings. Inter- and intra-state movement of essential and nonessential goods is allowed during the curfew; however, inter- and intra-district, as well as inter-state, public transport services may not operate during those hours. Telecommunications, fuel, electricity services, and manufacturing and agricultural operations, are also permitted. All travelers entering the state must register online up to 72 hours before travel on the Spandana website. Asymptomatic entrants - including international travelers from high-risk locations who test negative for COVID-19 upon arrival - will undergo a 14-day home quarantine; domestic passengers may avail quarantine exemptions.

• Karnataka: Officials have declared a statewide lockdown 06:00 May 10-06:00 May 25. Residents must stay home during curfews unless seeking or providing essential or emergency services. Essential shops will open 06:00-10:00 daily. Cargo transit, delivery services, and industrial operations are unaffected. While flights and train services will continue, public transport such as buses and Metro rails will remain suspended. Taxis and private hire vehicles may only operate for essential or emergency trips. Officials are advising against nonessential inter-district and inter-state travel; neighboring states such as Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Tamil Nadu have reduced or suspended inter-state public transport services. All educational, recreational, religious, sports facilities, and dine-in eateries are closed. Permitted establishments and transport services may function with limited capacity, subject to national COVID-19 protocols. Public gatherings remain banned. All travelers entering the state must register online up to 72 hours before travel; officials are advising asymptomatic domestic entrants to self-monitor their health for 14 days after arrival. Arrivals from other countries or high-risk locations, including Chandigarh, and states of Kerala, Maharashtra, and Punjab, must produce negative results of a COVID-19 test taken within 72 hours before departure. International arrivals must undergo additional self-paid on-arrival testing and a 14-day quarantine at home or in a designated facility, based on health assessments. Domestic passengers staying fewer than seven days may avail quarantine exemption if holding negative results of a COVID-19 test; they may also undergo self-paid testing upon arrival and quarantine for a maximum of 48 hours until the results arrive. Multiple regions require travelers from Karnataka State to undergo pre-departure or on-arrival testing.

• Kerala: Officials have banned most nonessential activity through May 16. Banks may operate until 14:00, with services for the public continuing until 13:00. Essential shops may remain open but must close by 19:30. Nonessential deliveries are banned though freight services may continue. Transport services are allowed with limited capacity; facemask-wearing is compulsory even when traveling alone in vehicles. Those exiting the state must produce negative COVID-19 test results to enter multiple states. All travelers entering the state must register online via the Jagratha portal up to 72 hours before travel and carry negative results of an RT-PCR COVID-19 test taken within 48 hours before arrival. Asymptomatic entrants must quarantine at home for 14 days. Passengers without results of pre-departure testing may undergo on-arrival testing and wait for negative results before boarding a connecting flight or exiting the airport; such passengers may serve their 14-day quarantine at home. Pre-approved domestic travelers leaving the state within seven days are exempt from testing and quarantine.

• Puducherry: Authorities have declared a territorywide lockdown 00:01 May 10-23:59 May 24. A 22:00-05:00 nightly curfew is active until further notice. Residents must stay home during curfews unless seeking or providing essential or emergency services. Essential businesses, including food establishments and banks, can open until 12:00 daily. Public transport can operate at 50 percent capacity; taxis and autorickshaws can only carry up to three and two passengers, respectively. Asymptomatic domestic travelers are not required to quarantine.

• Tamil Nadu: Officials have announced a complete lockdown 04:00 May 10-04:00 May 24. Authorities will suspend all public transport, including buses, taxis, and autorickshaws. Residents must stay home during curfews unless seeking or providing essential or emergency services. Groceries and food stores can open 06:00-12:00 daily; restaurants can only operate delivery services 06:00-10:00, 12:00-15:00, and 18:00-210:00 daily. Banks can open with 50 percent staffing. Recreational facilities such as cinemas, dine-in eateries, shopping malls, and grooming salons will remain closed. All travelers entering the state - except if from Puducherry - must register online before arrival. Domestic passengers intending to leave within 72 hours are exempt from testing and quarantine. Officials typically advise asymptomatic entrants - including international travelers entering with a COVID-19 test result obtained within the previous 72 hours - to monitor their health for 14 days. However, asymptomatic passengers from high-risk locations, such as Kerala and Maharashtra states, as well as Brazil, Europe, Middle East, South Africa, and the UK, must quarantine at home for at least seven days. Local variations exist. Domestic entrants to Coimbatore International Airpot (CJB) - except from Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Puducherry - must carry negative results of an RT-PCR COVID-19 test taken within 72 hours before departure or undergo on-arrival testing. Multiple districts are conducting enhanced medical screening for travelers from high-risk locations.

• Telangana: Authorities will ban nonessential activity statewide from 10:00 May 12 through May 21; nonessential movement and business activity will be allowed 06:00-10:00 daily. Officials are advising all asymptomatic domestic travelers to self-monitor their health for 14 days; no quarantine or testing is necessary. International passengers without results of pre-departure testing may avail of on-arrival testing at the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (HYD) and wait eight hours for negative results before boarding a connecting flight or exiting the airport; such passengers may serve their 14-day quarantine at home. Travelers must pre-book these tests through the Air Suvidha portal.

Emergency and utility services remain operational nationwide. While banks and businesses selling essential goods, such as fuel, food, and medicines, remain open in containment zones, officials will almost certainly regulate price, supply, and opening hours. Panic-buying and associated localized shortages of essential goods may occur in some areas. Sporadic clashes are possible if groups attempt to protest business closures or defy official orders. Police could forcibly disperse unruly crowds. Violators may face legal action. Authorities could modify restrictions at short notice, mainly in major cities.

Advice

Follow all official instructions; minimize outdoor activity to the extent possible. Abide by national health and safety measures. Reconfirm business appointments, deliveries, work, and travel arrangements. Do not check out of accommodation without confirming onward travel. Consider delaying traveling if experiencing symptoms associated with COVID-19, as they may prompt increased scrutiny and delays. Liaise with trusted contacts for further updates and guidance. Maintain contact with your diplomatic representation. Ensure contingency plans account for further disruptive measures or extensions of current restrictions. Reconsider and reconfirm nonemergency health appointments. Ensure access to essential items, plan for queues, and delays at available shopping centers. Carry proper identification documents, and heed all security advisories.

Resources

Ministry of Health and Family Welfare Help Page
Air Suvidha Portal
Andhra Pradesh COVID-19 Portal
Karnataka COVID-19 Portal
Kerala COVID-19 Portal
South Andaman District Portal
Tamil Nadu Electronic Pass Application
World Health Organization (WHO)