Bengaluru: The curse of March has returned to haunt India`s IT capital a year after the very first Covid-19 infection which was reported on March 8 last year in Bengaluru. The city seems to be witnessing a reverse in the decline of its Covid-19 cases and triggering the onset of a possible second wave of the deadly virus.
Bengaluru: The curse of March has returned to haunt India`s IT capital a year after the very first Covid-19 infection which was reported on March 8 last year in Bengaluru. The city seems to be witnessing a reverse in the decline of its Covid-19 cases and triggering the onset of a possible second wave of the deadly virus.
For the first time in months, the total number of cases in Bengaluru crossed the four-figure mark as the IT hub recorded 1,037 cases and six fatalities in the last 24 hours on Thursday due to Covid-19. The spike takes the total number of active cases to 8,623 of the total 12,067 across the state. The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), the city`s civic body, on Friday morning, was quick to point the blame on common areas like party halls, gyms and swimming pools within large apartment complexes as one of the main reasons for the spike.
"According to our analysis, when people mingle here, cases spread. We are sending a proposal to the government to close these facilities," N Manjunath Prasad, the BBMP commissioner told reporters on Friday. Health Minister K Sudhakar held a meeting to review the Covid-19 situation and progress of vaccination drive in the state. In picture - Beneficiaries registering for vaccine at a private hospital in Bengaluru.
Karnataka pre-prepared to handle Covid surge, says health minister as cases rise
Over 150 forest department personnel and other agencies were looking for the tiger for at least two weeks. (Photo: Sourced)
Tiger found dead in Karnataka’s Kodagu district He also hinted at the possibility of halving the seating capacities in cinema halls that was met with stiff resistance and denial by chief minister BS Yediyurappa. There have been at least two big-ticket Kannada movie releases in recent weeks during which people were seen dancing outside theatres with no semblance of any social distancing or wearing masks.
Though Karnataka was one of the first states to implement a lockdown when there were barely any cases, it was also among the fastest to relax restrictions when the caseload was at its highest to allow resuming of economic activities and bringing in some much-needed revenues to the cash-starved state. This economic consideration has remained the biggest priority for Karnataka despite the sharp spike in cases over the last fortnight. The state government has also put the onus of containing the spread on the people while turning a blind eye on its own shortcomings like contact tracing, surveillance and preventing large gatherings across the state and its capital, Bengaluru. The government argues that it cannot do the job alone and requires active cooperation from its citizens. But the same government has refused to rein in large political gatherings and meets where masks and social distancing are rarely followed, let alone enforced, experts and activists said.
One senior government official attributed the rise to people failing to maintain isolation requirements within the households. "Contact tracing and tracking have been thrown in the wind. All this remains on paper but on the ground, very few of such protocols are being followed," said a private medical professional, requesting not to be named. He added that authorities have been working for over a year and fatigue factor appears to have set in. "We cannot take the same approach we took last year again," he said.
According to government data, there are 4.46 contacts (primary and secondary) per patient across the state. But the data does not support the number of people in active quarantine. Multiple people who were infected do not recall the BBMP or any other agency getting in touch to get details of travel history or trace their contacts. Medical practitioners said that the government will take all precautions and follow the protocols of any Covid-19 positive person who has got any media attention. The practitioners were referring to a Shivamogga-based individual who was tested positive for the South African variant of the virus.
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