Bengaluru: Bengaluru confirmed 1,172 new covid-19 cases and 24 out of the total 42 deaths reported across Karnataka, in the 24 hours until 5 pm on Saturday.
Total number of cases in Karnataka jumped to 21,459 cases as 1,839 persons tested positive in the state, of which nearly 12,000 are active.
The state continued to report record numbers for the fourth consecutive day fueling fears that the state could be hitting another massive wave of cases with all indications towards community transmission.
As an immediate measure, the state will go under lockdown for a minimum of 33 hours starting at 8 pm on Saturday. Chief minister B.S.Yediyurappa has ordered that a total lockdown will be observed on all Sunday's as a measure to contain the spread of the virus.
Yediyurappa on Saturday directed that all areas that have reported high cases be identified and sealed down.
The chief minister has ruled out another lockdown, especially in its growth capital, Bengaluru.
Facing an acute fund crunch and prolonged economic uncertainty after the three months of covid-19 induced lockdown, the state government has no room for another closure that would further cripple the financial condition of Karnataka.
The surge in cases has also added to the problems of hospital bed availability and other piling up challenges in tackling covid-19. Officials say that there is a backlog of nearly 30,000 samples that are yet to be tested as some laboratories were non-operational for a few days.
The state government has now been forced to depend on private hospitals and medical colleges to spare beds for covid-19 persons after it lost out on precious time during the lockdown to create healthcare infrastructure for the expected surge. The government has projected around 25,000 active cases by mid-August.
To relieve some of the pressure on hospital beds, occupied by asymptomatic persons, the state government on Saturday released guidelines of home quarantine of covid-19 positive persons. However, the eligibility conditions listed by the government would make it difficult for a large portion of people to avail this facility that would help save money required for treatment at a private healthcare or be forced into poorly maintained state-run centres.
