Twelve new positive cases of coronavirus have been confirmed in Karnataka, taking the total number of the affected in the state to 74, the health department said on Saturday, 28 March. The majority of the cases – 41 – are from Bengaluru, while 8 cases have been reported from Chikkaballapura.
"Till date 76 COVID-19 positive cases have been confirmed, which includes three deaths and five discharges. In total, 3,076 samples have been tested and 2,763 have come back negative," a health department official said.
Two new dedicated helplines were also set up, apart from 104. The new number is 9745697456. Those migrant labourers in need and seeking food supplies should call toll free helpline 155214.
When asked about the three cases in the state – one each in Mysuru, Tumakuru and Dakshina Kannada – where there is no travel or contact history, officials denied community transmission of coronavirus in the state.
They further added that the department had now started testing those patients who displayed symptoms of severe acute respiratory syndrome as well. “We are testing those with severe pulmonary disorder,” the official said.
Among the newly infected, three women are from Uttara Kannada. They are wife (age 54) and daughters (age 28 and 23) of a patient who has been tested positive and is currently undergoing treatment.
Five contacts of a patient already tested positive, have also been confirmed for the infection. Among them, four are men of age 23, 70, 38 and 18 years and one woman of 32 years. While two of them are residents of Hindupur in Andhra Pradesh, the rest are from Chikkaballapura. All five cases have been isolated at a designated hospital in Chikkaballapura.
Officials also said that a special team had been formed to tackle the situation in Chikkaballapura, where they were working in tandem with a team in Andhra Pradesh to cross-reference the primary contacts.
Also, a 21-year old man, who is a resident of Bengaluru with a history of travel to London and son of a patient who is undergoing treatment; and a 63-year old woman, resident of Bengaluru, with a history of travel to London, have tested positive.
Officials also said that they had so far identified 1,000-odd primary contacts of all COVID-19 cases to date in the state.
“We have divided the 1,000 people into two categories. High-risk primary contacts who are over 60 years old and who have comorbid conditions. They will be quarantined in a government hospital. The second category of low-risk patients will either be quarantined in a hospital or we will be sending them to a government-controlled hotel or guesthouse to be monitored,” they said.
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