As per the daily morning bulletin released by the government of Karnataka related to the COVID-19 outbreak, a total of 557 positive cases have been confirmed in the city. 22 new cases were confirmed today.
22 new cases of the novel coronavirus have been confirmed by the state between 5 pm 29th April and 12 pm on 30th April. Out of the 22 cases, Dakshina Kannada, Tumkur and Davanagere has one case each, Bengaluru Urban has 3 cases, 2 cases from Vijayapura and 14 other cases have been from the district of Belagavi.
Out of the three cases in Bengaluru Urban, two of them have been reported from the containment zone of Padarayanapura. According to sources, these two cases are a result of random testing in the containment zone. Random testing is being carried out in containment zones to eliminate the third phase of transmission – community transmission. As the first results of random testing arrive, is Bengaluru in the community transmission phase?
Padarayanapur headed for Community Transmission?
Community transmission is the third stage of the disease spread where the origin of the infection is unclear. People who are getting transmitted of the virus or the disease will be unaware of the way they got infected. The first phase of the transmission is infection through the origin of the virus. In the second phase, the primary and the secondary contacts of the infected person are exposed to the virus. In both these cases, contact tracing can be done and the virus spread can be contained. In community transmission, containment of the outbreak becomes difficult and the outbreak spreads rapidly.
Since the first day of the outbreak, the government officials, the health experts, and the officials from ICMR have been wary of community outbreak in the country. A community transmission in a densely populated country like India is a nightmare for the frontline workers and the administration.
The two cases that emerged out of random testing in the containment zone of Padarayanapura is a red flag for the administration. However, the administration is yet to confirm the random testing and possible community transmission. The picture, as of now, looks grim.