<p>Karnataka reported 29 new cases today; Hongasandra & Padarayanapura are emerging as hotspots. Inter-ministerial teams spread out to more cities to monitor the lockdown, and hospitals in Bengaluru find themselves in a fix following ICMR's latest guidelines. All this and more on today's update with Akhil and Suraksha.</p>.<p>Full Text:</p>.<p>This the daily Covid update from Deccan Herald.<br />On the bulletin today:<br />Karnataka reports 29 new cases today, Hongasandra emerges as the new cluster...The Centre says Covid-19 outbreak in India is under control and...ICMR guidelines put maternity hospitals in the city in a fix...But first, a look at the national numbers.<br />---<br />According to the government’s top health advisor, the Covid-19 outbreak in the country is under control. The surveillance and the nationwide lockdown has slowed down the doubling of cases from 3 days to five. But...More than 1000 new cases have been reported from the country today, and India has more than 24,000 total cases.<br />More than 18,000 people are active <br />carriers of the virus.<br />More than 5000 patients have recovered since they were first tested and...<br />The country has registered 775 covid-related deaths so far.<br />----<br />The Indian Council of Medical Research has collected more than five lakh forty thousand for testing from across the country from more than five lakh twenty-five thousand individuals so far. Multiple samples are taken from the same individual to determine the presence of the virus.<br />----<br />A quick look at the numbers from the states…<br />Maharashtra reported 390 cases today, far fewer than yesterday’s numbers but the highest number of cases recorded in India. With this the state has 5559 active cases and has received permission for pool testing and plasma therapy to deal with the spike in numbers.<br />Gujarat reported 191 cases today and has the second highest number of active cases in the country.<br />Madhya Pradesh reported 160 new cases today and Uttar Pradesh reported 111 cases.<br />West Bengal reported 54 new cases today and has lost 57 people to the virus so far.<br />Among the Southern states, Tamil Nadu reported 72 news cases and has 866 active cases.<br />Kerala reported 3 cases today and with the death of a 4-month-old baby has reached a total of 3 deaths.<br />Karnataka has moved to the 12th spot.<br />**********<br />29 new cases have been reported in the state today. Out of 304 active cases in the state, 5 are in ICU. The number of people discharged stands at 152 and the number of deaths at 18.<br />---<br />Dakshina Kannada district administration on Thursday night had a tough time during the cremation of Patient 432, a-75 -year -old woman who died of Coronavirus, amid the protest by local residents. <br />The authorities had arranged the cremation at Pacchanady crematorium. But due to the protest by the locals the body was shifted Moodushedde, where they were again met with resistance by the locals and their MLA Umanath Kotian. Finally, the body was cremated at Kaikunje in Bantwal amid tight police security.<br />---<br />Of the new cases reported today, 19 have been reported from Bengaluru Urban. <br />11 cases have been reported from Hongasandra. The BBMP is yet to trace how the index patient P419 in Hongasandra got the infection. Results for 104 people are awaited. 185 primary contacts and 60 secondary contacts have been quarantined and their samples have been collected for testing. <br />Padarayanapura has reported 5 cases today and has a total of 24 cases now. In all, 248 have been quarantined in Padarayanapura: 56 primary contacts and 192 secondary contacts. <br />2 cases from the city have presented with Severe Acute Respiratory Illness and 1 with Influenza Like Illness.<br />---<br />Bagalkote has reported 3 cases: of which 2 are from Mudhol and are direct contacts of Patient 380. One from Jamakhandi has Influenza Like Illness.<br />Belagavi and Vijayapura have reported 2 cases each and are direct contacts of previously diagnosed patients.<br />Chikkaballapura and Mandya have reported 1 case each, both are direct contacts. 1 case from Tumakuru has a travel history to Surat in Gujarat. (PAUSE)<br />---<br />The minority Welfare, Waqf and Hajj Department, has issued an order for the suspension of congressional prayers at mosques during Ramzan. The order is until May 3rd. Ramzan is expected to start tomorrow.<br />---<br />Moving on to the news from across the country...<br />A drug that was discovered 50 years ago to make a vaccine for leprosy and later TB, will now go into clinical trial mode to test its effectiveness against Covid-19.<br />At the core of the drug, lies a microbe named Mycobacterium W, which boosts <br />the body’s immunity to fight against external agents like bacteria.<br />The intravenous drug Sepsivac is primarily used against sepsis or blood poisoning. <br />The first trial will involve 50 critically-ill COVID-19 patients to check whether the drug can reduce mortality. The second trial would be on about 500 asymptomatic persons, who may be close contacts of COVID-19 patients and health care staff. The objective is to boost their innate immunity thereby preventing them from acquiring the disease.<br />----<br />The National Green Tribunal has asked both Centre and state governments to ensure scientific disposal of COVID-19 waste in accordance with the Biomedical Waste Management Rules, 2016, guidelines.<br />The bench has also directed the Chief Secretary of States and Union Territories to closely monitor the scientific storage, transport, handling, management and disposal of COVID-19 waste since improper handling poses a grave threat to the environment and health of people.<br />Disposal of Covid-19 waste in general bins as part of municipal waste can also be hazardous.<br />------<br />The Ministry of Home Affairs has sent five Inter-Ministerial Central Teams to make an on-the-spot assessment of the Covid-19 situation in Ahmedabad, Surat, Thane, Hyderabad and Chennai following reports of lockdown violation. According to the ministry the situation is "especially serious" in these cities with many hotspots emerging. Two teams are already in Maharashtra's Mumbai and Pune while Thane is the new addition.<br />----<br />The IMCT in Mumbai is said to have visited three localities, including Dharavi. The team found because of use of common toilets, people have to leave their homes despite lockdown and suggested that the administration set up portable toilets in these localities. The team also suggested that close to 3,000 people in Dharavi should be sent to institutional quarantine centres. The team has also advised increasing the testing capacity and the number of surveillance teams.<br />----<br />The Ministry of Home Affairs has said that the revised guidelines on Covid-19 has no provisions to take legal action, or <br />imprison the CEO of a company, or seal a factory, in case an employee is found infected with the novel coronavirus. The clarification came after heavy speculation in the industry about the new guidelines. However, Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla has said that it is important that all workplaces take measures to ensure social distancing and follow standard health protocols. The guidelines include several measures like one hour gap between shifts and extensive sanitisation drives. Bhalla has also asked states to ensure that the guidelines are not being misused to harass the management of any manufacturing or commercial establishments.</p>.<p>---<br />Moving on to news from Karnataka...<br />In further relaxation of the lockdown in the state, rural industries in Yadgir, Koppal, Shivamogga, Chikmagalur, Kolar, Chamarajnagar, Raichur, Haveri and Hassan have been permitted to operate. These nine districts are unaffected by Covid-19.<br />---<br />After 5 of the117 accused in the <br />Padarayanapura violence tested positive for Covid-19, a political battle and blame game has begun between HD Kumaraswamy and the ruling BJP.<br />The accused had been moved from Parappana Agrahara to Ramanagara jail. The staff who were involved in shifting the accused will be identified and quarantined. Ramanagara had until now been a green zone, as Covid-19 cases had not been reported from the district.<br />According to Kumaraswamy, who is also the Ramanagara MLA, the government will have to take responsibility for the outbreak in the district. <br />Following the criticism the state government has decided to isolate those who tested positive at Victoria Hospital, and the rest will be moved to the Hajj Bhawan in Bengaluru. 15 people who are already quarantined here will be moved elsewhere.<br />Frontline health and police staff deputed at Padarayanapura and about 30 jail staff from Ramanagara will be quarantined.<br />----<br />Two days the Indian Council of Medical Research issued guidelines that pregnant women who lived in containment zones and were approaching their delivery date, must get tested for Covid-19, even if they are not currently showing symptoms.<br />The guidelines have created confusion in government as well as private hospitals that cater exclusively to deliveries in Bengaluru.<br />There are currently 28 BBMP hospitals which are handling deliveries but the civic body initially thought they would test such women with rapid antibody test kits but with the ICMR putting that on hold they are yet to take a call on whether they should send throat swabs of women for PCR testing. <br />Private obstetric hospitals have more than 50 women each who hail from red zones in the city. They want home collection of samples for these women which they say was seamlessly done in Delhi, Mumbai and Chennai but isn't being done in Bengaluru. <br />There are seven labs in Bengaluru: Three government and five private. Two private labs are still not operational. The reproductive and child health wing of the state health department says there are 80,000 deliveries on an average per month and they don't have the resources to call every woman. However since the revised guidelines apply to only those from hotspots and large gatherings, they have decided to test them once the women reach hospitals for their deliveries.<br />---<br />The Karnataka State Pollution Control <br />Board has tightened rules for incineration of waste from hospitals and residences of the quarantined individuals to avoid the possible spread of coronavirus through biomedical waste. The maximum number of hours for disposal of such waste has been reduced from 48 to 24 hours. The <br />board has also told its officials and the district-level environment officers to monitor the disposal of such waste regularly.<br />---<br />And before we go,<br />The lockdown is hard on all of us, and more so for people with disabilities. To make sure the community isn’t left in the lurch, social entrepreneurs Vishnu and Vishal Soman have started a volunteer helpline 'Volunteers vs Covid 19'.<br />The group currently has 58 volunteers in its virtual volunteer network across Bengaluru. They focus on delivering cooked food and groceries in addition to medicines. They also try to provide items free of cost, for those with financial difficulties. Knowing sign language makes them more suited to address specific needs. If you’d like to get in touch with them, or if you know someone who does, call them at 90196 63172<br />---<br />For the latest updates, log on to deccanherald.com. </p>
