Karnataka logs nearly 30,000 new Covid-19 cases, 208 deaths

Karnataka on Saturday reported 29,438 new cases and 208 deaths, both new records, as the virus raced through the state. Of the total, worst-hit Bengaluru alone accounted for 17,342 cases and 149 deaths.

“From March 24 to April 21, Karnataka witnessed 1,301 Covid deaths, out of which 819 or two-third of the deaths occurred in Bengaluru Urban alone. This is the effect of an increase in positive cases per million in Bengaluru Urban from 39,590 to 51,300,” said Mysore Sanjeev, Convenor, Project Jeevan Raksha, an initiative of Proxima and supported by the Public Health Foundation of India.

Bengaluru Urban added 1.62 lakh new Covid patients during this period, leading to a 10-fold increase in the number of active cases from 11,520 to 1,13,374.

Amid the gloom, there is something to cheer as well. According to data, Davangere and Gadag — two districts that witnessed relatively higher mortality during the first wave — have effectively managed to ensure zero deaths during the period.

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14 out of the 30 districts in the state have witnessed mortality in single digits so far. These districts include: Davangere, Gadag, Chitradurga, Raichur, Koppal, Kodagu, Bagalkote, Dakshina Kannada, Chikkamagaluru, Udupi, Haveri, Ramanagara, Chamarajanagar, Yadgir, Chikkaballapura and Shivamogga.

“Higher mortality Moving Growth Rate (MGR) indicates shorter doubling period or vice-versa. The 28-day Mortality MGR of Karnataka is 10% whereas in Bengaluru Urban it is 18%,” said Mysore.

“Bengaluru Urban, Bidar and Kalaburagi have a high mortality MGR. Poor medical infrastructure and a lack of competent medical professionals to treat critical Covid patients could be one of the reasons for higher mortality,” he said.