Stating that there is no shortage of medical oxygen and Remdesivir, a key drug used in treating COVID-19 patients, in Dakshina Kananda, Deputy Commissioner K.V. Rajendra said here on Tuesday that 783 of the total 4,816 hospital beds have been occupied by COVID-19 patients in the district.
Addressing presspersons, the Deputy Commissioner said that 3,249 patients were under home isolation and the number of active cases was 4,032.
He said that six COVID-19 patients died during the second wave and the case fatality rate stood at 1.83%.
The Deputy Commissioner said that of the 359 beds available in government hospitals in the district, 130 have been occupied. The remaining 230 beds are vacant.
The district has buffer stock of oxygen and there are 1,000 vials of Remdesivir, he said.
Dr. Rajendra said that the district administration will come out with a mobile application this week through which people will come to know about the availability of beds in hospitals. The bed management software application is being tested now and it might take another two or three days to fine tune it. While launching it, the administration will also announce the number on which people can make calls in case of any distress. The call will be received by the Command Control Centre at the Mangaluru City Corporation building.
Salons closed
To a question, Dr. Rajendra said that salons and beauty parlours will have to remain closed during the lockdown. Though the new guidelines issued by the government on Monday have not made any particular mention that they will be allowed to do business, it meant that they will have to remain shut, he said.
The Deputy Commissioner said that educational institutions have been instructed not to forcibly vacate students from their hostels.
Workers of industries that have been allowed to operate will have to show their identity card during checking.
He said that the district administration will operate KSRTC buses on two or three routes from Wednesday to enable government hospital staff to attend to their duties. Private hospitals will have to make their own arrangements to enable their employees to come to work.
