Cases spiral in Bengaluru IT corridor; apartment dwellers to blame, say ministers

BENGALURU: The Bengaluru IT corridor, especially the Mahadevapura-Whitefield belt, is reporting a high number of cases, despite 10 days of corona curfew.While the other seven zones of Bengaluru are also reporting a worryingly high number of cases, Mahadevapura zone is the worst-affected area in the city.To solve the mystery of the high numbers, and work out a strategy to counter the spike, cabinet ministers and zonal representatives Forest Minister Aravind Limbavali and Urban Development Minister Byrathi A Basavaraj called a meeting of joint commissioners, health and civic officials on Thursday.

The meeting, which lasted almost four hours, arrived at the conclusion that it was the “irresponsibility of some educated upper middle class residents living in hundreds of apartment complexes which is to blame for the rise in numbers”.Limbavali said the blame rests squarely with apartment residents, who in spite of testing Covid-positive, just isolate themselves at home and do not inform anyone. They get prescriptions from doctors and use medicines to treat themselves. Many of them force their domestic helps to come to work, and these helpers, who work in two or three houses, unsuspectingly become super-spreaders as they use lifts and common areas in apartments. Limbavali said they will not hesitate to invoke strict measures like containment zones, which were in force during the first Covid-19 wave.

Basavaraj reportedly raised his voice and warned civic officials against dereliction of duty by their staff, and said action will be taken against them. In case Covid patients do not behave responsibly, provisions of the Disaster Management Act will be clamped, as the public cannot be endangered due to a few people. Courts have clearly said it is a national health emergency and the government can use strict measures like containment zones and micro-containment zones to deal with the epidemic, they concluded. Primary Health Centres in the area will be converted into centres to treat Covid patients, which was the strategy followed in Maharashtra too, Basavaraj added.