<p>Karnataka reported 4,537 new cases on Saturday, on a day when Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa held a meeting with private hospitals who promised 3,000 additional beds, said Medical Education Minister Dr K Sudhakar addressing a press conference here.</p>.<p>"In a meeting with CM Yediyurappa, private hospitals managements have agreed to part with a total of 5,200 beds for Covid-19 treatment. They have already given 2,200 beds and have agreed to give 3,000 beds by the end of the week. Only one hospital, Vydehi Institute of Medical Sciences did not attend the meeting. The CM has said that if they don't allocate 200 beds, action should be taken against them," said Medical Education Minister Dr K Sudhakar.</p>.<p>The Government issued a circular on Saturday for mandatory admission of asymptomatic and mildly symptomatic cases in Covid care centres or home isolation. Private hospitals should not admit asympomatic patients.</p>.<p>The state conducted 24,909 RTPCR tests, 110 CBNAAT tests, 485 TrueNAT tests and 9,315 rapid antigen tests on Saturday, in all 34,819 tests, which is the highest number of tests done in a single day.</p>.<p>However, asked about the backlog of samples, which is leading to a high turnaround time for test reports to come, causing hardships to patients, Additional Chief Secretary, Health, Jawaid Akhtar, had no answers. He clarified saying the surge in cases was not because of testing the backlog of samples but were fresh cases surfacing everyday.</p>.<p>"I do not have the exact number of pending samples waiting to be tested, but I can assure you that it is not a lot. The surge on cases is not because of clearing of backlog but fresh cases surfacing everyday,"(sic) Akhtar said. The state is procuring an additional 10 lakh rapid antigen test kits.</p>.<p>Asked if the state would agree there is community transmission in Karnataka just like the Kerala CM has conceded to the fact, Sudhakar sidestepped the question.</p>.<p>After eight BESCOM 24/7 helpline staff tested positive, the government had to shut it down for two days. Now, for grievances related to denial of hospital admission for Covid-19, patients should WhatsApp 9480812450 or email <a href="mailto:1912covidhelpline@gmail.com" target="_blank">1912covidhelpline@gmail.com</a>. </p>.<p>The total number of active cases in the state now stands at 36,631. 93 new deaths were reported on Saturday, including 49 from Bengaluru, taking the death toll to 1,240 apart from six non-Covid deaths. 580 patients are in the ICU, out of which 332 are in Bengaluru alone. The total number of positive cases now are 59,652. So far 9,84,996 tests have been done. With 1,018 discharges done on Saturday, the total number of recoveries in the state stand at 21,775. </p>.<p>The state's positivity rate is 5% according to Sudhakar, mortality rate 2.08% and recovery rate 36.50%. Bengaluru alone accounted for 2,125 cases, followed by 10 districts who reported cases in triple digits -- Dakshina Kannada (509), Dharwad (186), Vijayapura (176), Ballari (155), Belagavi (137), among others.<br /><br />Keywords: COVID-19, coronavirus, coronavirus update, coronavirus news, coronavirus latest news, coronavirus live news, coronavirus lockdown, india coronavirus, Karnataka, cases, deaths, karnataka cases today, karnataka covid-19, Bengaluru, bangalore coronavirus</p>
<p>Karnataka reported 4,537 new cases on Saturday, on a day when Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa held a meeting with private hospitals who promised 3,000 additional beds, said Medical Education Minister Dr K Sudhakar addressing a press conference here.</p>.<p>"In a meeting with CM Yediyurappa, private hospitals managements have agreed to part with a total of 5,200 beds for Covid-19 treatment. They have already given 2,200 beds and have agreed to give 3,000 beds by the end of the week. Only one hospital, Vydehi Institute of Medical Sciences did not attend the meeting. The CM has said that if they don't allocate 200 beds, action should be taken against them," said Medical Education Minister Dr K Sudhakar.</p>.<p>The Government issued a circular on Saturday for mandatory admission of asymptomatic and mildly symptomatic cases in Covid care centres or home isolation. Private hospitals should not admit asympomatic patients.</p>.<p>The state conducted 24,909 RTPCR tests, 110 CBNAAT tests, 485 TrueNAT tests and 9,315 rapid antigen tests on Saturday, in all 34,819 tests, which is the highest number of tests done in a single day.</p>.<p>However, asked about the backlog of samples, which is leading to a high turnaround time for test reports to come, causing hardships to patients, Additional Chief Secretary, Health, Jawaid Akhtar, had no answers. He clarified saying the surge in cases was not because of testing the backlog of samples but were fresh cases surfacing everyday.</p>.<p>"I do not have the exact number of pending samples waiting to be tested, but I can assure you that it is not a lot. The surge on cases is not because of clearing of backlog but fresh cases surfacing everyday,"(sic) Akhtar said. The state is procuring an additional 10 lakh rapid antigen test kits.</p>.<p>Asked if the state would agree there is community transmission in Karnataka just like the Kerala CM has conceded to the fact, Sudhakar sidestepped the question.</p>.<p>After eight BESCOM 24/7 helpline staff tested positive, the government had to shut it down for two days. Now, for grievances related to denial of hospital admission for Covid-19, patients should WhatsApp 9480812450 or email <a href="mailto:1912covidhelpline@gmail.com" target="_blank">1912covidhelpline@gmail.com</a>. </p>.<p>The total number of active cases in the state now stands at 36,631. 93 new deaths were reported on Saturday, including 49 from Bengaluru, taking the death toll to 1,240 apart from six non-Covid deaths. 580 patients are in the ICU, out of which 332 are in Bengaluru alone. The total number of positive cases now are 59,652. So far 9,84,996 tests have been done. With 1,018 discharges done on Saturday, the total number of recoveries in the state stand at 21,775. </p>.<p>The state's positivity rate is 5% according to Sudhakar, mortality rate 2.08% and recovery rate 36.50%. Bengaluru alone accounted for 2,125 cases, followed by 10 districts who reported cases in triple digits -- Dakshina Kannada (509), Dharwad (186), Vijayapura (176), Ballari (155), Belagavi (137), among others.<br /><br />Keywords: COVID-19, coronavirus, coronavirus update, coronavirus news, coronavirus latest news, coronavirus live news, coronavirus lockdown, india coronavirus, Karnataka, cases, deaths, karnataka cases today, karnataka covid-19, Bengaluru, bangalore coronavirus</p>
