A day after recording the biggest spike in the number of COVID-19 positive cases on a single day and crossing the 1,000 mark, the State on Saturday reported 36 new cases, taking the tally to 1,092.
With 14 new cases in a single day, Bengaluru reported a majority of the new cases. All the 14 are contacts of P-653, a housekeeping staff of a hotel at Shivajinagar. P-653 has now become a “super-spreader”, having infected 29 people in the last one week, said Primary and Secondary Education Minister S. Suresh Kumar, who is the COVID spokesperson for Karnataka.
One more passenger in Udupi, who returned from Dubai, and 11 inter-State travellers who returned from Mumbai and Ahmedabad have tested positive. Of the new cases, eight cases have been reported from Kalaburagi, four from Hassan, three from Shivamogga, and one each from Udupi, Mandya, Dharwad, Davangere, Ballari, Bagalkot, and Vijayapura.
While all the four and three cases in Hassan and Shivamogga, respectively, and one each in Kalaburagi, Dharwad, and Bagalkot have a travel history to Mumbai, the lone case reported in Ballari has a travel history to Ahmedabad.
Action against lab
The State government will write to the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) to initiate action against Lal Path Labs in Bengaluru for discrepancy in COVID-19 testing of a pregnant woman recently.
While the report from the private lab said the woman had tested positive, a repeat test done in a government lab showed she was negative. The private lab is only an ICMR-approved collection centre in Bengaluru.
When pointed out that following similar discrepancies in Delhi, the Delhi government has now ordered a probe, the Minister said the Karnataka government would write to the ICMR seeking action against the Bengaluru lab.
Action against hotels
Following several complaints over poor quality food and unhygienic accommodation being provided in private quarantine hotels in the city, Minister S. Suresh Kumar on Saturday said he told the police to inspect the hotels and take action.
When pointed out that one of the quarantined guests in a private hotel was served food that allegedly had a cockroach in it, the Minister said, “In such cases, the BBMP should go to the extent of cancelling the licence of the hotel. I will speak to the BBMP Commissioner in this regard and ask him to initiate immediate action.”
Criminal action against P-764 for violating containment zone norms
The State Health Department will initiate criminal action against P-764, a 45-year-old male resident of Tumakuru, who stayed in Padarayanapura and went to Sira in Tumakuru (after Padarayanapura was declared a containment zone) and tested positive there.
Asked how he could travel from a containment zone and whether action would be initiated against him, Primary and Secondary Education Minister S. Suresh Kumar, who is the COVID spokesperson for Karnataka, said criminal action would be initiated against him. The person worked as a cook at Padarayanapura.
Stating that the police and BBMP officials were surprised as to how he escaped from the containment zone, the Minister said, “It is unfortunate that people are not serious about following containment zone norms.”
