On Monday, the Karnataka government hinted at a move that is likely to bring back the harsher lockdown that includes banning incoming and outgoing movement in the worst affected districts like Bengaluru.
As per the sources, Karnataka is going to bring back the complete lockdown on or after July in the wake of a humongous spike in the number of cases in the state. The lockdown, if it happens, is likely to include restrictions of entering and exiting the higher risk districts, closure of major public places, religious places, and certain markets for at least 2 weeks.
The revenue minister R Ashoka met with officers and has reportedly said that the government is likely to impose lockdown only after the 7th of July. The SSLC examinations are scheduled to end on July 7th. The state is unlikely to disturb the students. It is also said that the Chief Minister is likely to hold a meeting on July 4 and decide on the kind of lockdown.
The revenue minister also said that the cases are likely to further increase in the month of July and August. He said,
“We are taking steps to add 8,000 beds immediately – 5,000 of them at Bengaluru Exhibition Centre on Tumakuru Road. 1,000 each at Bangalore University and the agriculture university, 250 at Kormangala stadium, 300 at government ayurvedic college hostels, 432 at Haj Bhavan, and 176 beds at the Art of Living on Kanakpura Road.”
Testing In Private Labs
Talking about private testing centers who were informing the patients directly about their results, the minister said,
“Now, we have issued a directive asking them to upload test results only on BBMP and ICMR portals, and the authorities, in turn, will inform with patients along with the treatment roadmap. Before they could do so, ward-level health officers will meet the patient, check whether he or she is symptomatic or not. If symptomatic, he or she will be sent to a designated hospital; if asymptomatic, he or she will be taken to a COVID Care center.”
So far, the city of Bengaluru has reported 4,052 COVID-19 cases of which over 3,427 cases have been active cases. The city has amounted to 91 deaths due to COVID-19. The state of Karnataka, on the other hand, has so far reported 14,295 COVID-19 cases and over 226 deaths. Over 8,000 people have successfully recovered from the novel coronavirus disease while 6,388 are currently active in the state.
Source: Times of India
