Karnataka unlock: State records 4.86% Covid-19 positivity rate

Covid-19 cases continued to decline in Dakshina Kannada, with 506 people testing positive for the novel coronavirus on Friday. With three more Covid related fatalities, the death toll in the district rose to 972.

Opening of parks and industrial units with riders, extending the duration of shops selling essential goods and permission for autos and taxis to ply with a maximum of two passengers are among the relaxations announced by the Karnataka government in 19 districts from June 14, in its revised guidelines issued on Friday. Chief minister B S Yediyurappa on Thursday said Covid-19 induced lockdown measures will continue in 11 districts with high positivity ratetill June 21, while some relaxations will be given in the rest of the state from June 14. The 11 districts are Chikkamagaluru, Shivamogga, Davangere, Mysuru, Chamarajanagara, Hassan, Dakshina Kannada, Bengaluru Rural, Mandya, Belagavi and Kodagu. (PTI)

The state government on Friday issued the revised guidelines for the 20 districts, including Bengaluru, where lockdown has been relaxed and allowed standalone liquor stores and optical shops to be open till 2pm. Under the revised guidelines, as announced by chief minister B S Yediyurappa, the government formally notified the extension of timing for essential services and groceries to be open till 2pm.

Honeywell on Friday announced that it has established a critical care centre at Bowring Hospital in Bengaluru to treat Covid-19 patients. The technology company said in a statement that it has also donated 200 oxygen concentrators, N95 respirators, and PPE kits to the Government for distribution in the state. (PTI)

Government and private schools following the state board will resume online classes from July 1, but the education department is yet to finalise the tender for printing textbooks. According to the department of public instruction, the tender will be finalised in a couple of days. It will take a maximum of 100 days to print all textbooks. “But we will not wait till it gets completed. We will start distribution by mid-August. By August-end or September, we hope to complete 50 per cent of the distribution,” said commissioner V Anbukumar. “We will also speed up the printing.”

A consortium working from Bengaluru, Hyderabad, New Delhi and Pune will upscale coronavirus genomic surveillance, complementing national efforts led by the Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomic Consortia (INSACOG). Set up with support and seed funding from Rockefeller Foundation, the effort will track the emergence of viral variants. The consortium led by the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Hyderabad includes the National Centre for Biological Sciences, Institute For Stem Cell Science and Regenerative Medicine (InStem) and Nimhans (all three in Bengaluru); CSIR-IGIB (New Delhi) and Pune Knowledge Cluster as well as IISER and CSIR-NCL (both in Pune). “The consortium aims to develop targeted sampling strategies based on granular epidemiological and clinical data,” it said.

Private hospitals confirmed the declining fatality graph. “It’s the city’s ICUs that sound the alarm bells when cases are rising or decreasing. The situation is improving, and ventilator beds are available,” said Dr Pradeep Rangappa, criticalcare specialist and member of State Covid-19 criticalcare support team. The situation now is different from April and May when finding an ICU bed was the toughest and led to deaths among many patients, he added.

The concessions in 20 districts include operation of cabs and autorickshaws (with a maximum of two passengers per ride), opening of essential shops between 6am and 2pm (they currently close at 10am), parks to stay open from 5am to 10am, all industries can function with 50% of the staff and street vendors can do business from 6am to 2pm.

With the pandemic's second wave waning, 11,042 new cases were logged, while194 patients succumbed to the infection in a day, said the state health bulletin on Thursday. "With 11,042 positive cases were registered on Wednesday, the state's Covid tally rose to 27,39,290, including 2,10,652 active cases, while recoveries increased to 24,96,132, with 15,721 patients discharged during the day," said the bulletin.

Across the state, various citizens' outfits and religious organisations have done their bit to supplement the efforts of the government in the fight against the pandemic by setting up Covid Care Centres (CCCs).

Krishnaraja MLA SA Ramadas has been offering eatables to monkeys on Chamundi Hills for more than a fortnight now. Hitherto, they had been feeding on bananas and food offered by devotees.

The Covid-induced slowdown has cast a shadow on the farming sector with the cash-strapped government dithering on recruitments for the agriculture department. Agriculture minister BC Patil said more than 55% posts are vacant in his department and the severe staff crunch is being acutely felt now, since the southwest monsoon has set in, and with good rain forecast, sowing has begun.

More than 80 families in Dawal Malik, a village in Gadag district, are refusing to get vaccinated, complicating the job of health workers. They believe the spirit of the saint after whom the place is named will protect them from any evil or harm. The village and the hilltop dargah of saint Dawal Malik draw worshippers from across faiths. Residents are confident the spirit is watching over them, so they don’t have doors in their houses.