Another woman tests Covid-19 positive, Karnataka total 11

A 67-year-old woman tested positive for coronavirus, taking the total number of cases in Karnataka to 11, state Health Minister B. Sriramulu said on Tuesday.

"The 11th victim who tested positive is a resident of Bengaluru and returned to the city from Dubai via Goa on March 9. She is known case of chronic kidney disease," Sriramulu said in a tweet.

Though the woman was in home isolation since returning from Dubai, she was admitted in a designated hospital on Monday.

"In all, 21 high risk contacts have been identified, including 5 family members. They all are under strict home quarantine," the minister said.

Earlier in the day, 2 persons, including a young woman in Bengaluru, tested positive for the infection.

The new cases were of a 20-year-old woman who travelled from the UK and a 63-year-old doctor who treated the 76-year-old patient (since deceased) in Kalaburagi early this month.

"Both are admitted in the isolation wards in designated hospitals in Bengaluru and Kalaburagi," said Sriramulu.

Following the doctor's positive report, health officials were trying to identify other patients he had treated since the outbreak. The doctor's family too has been quarantined at home.

The 76-year-old man died on March 10 and was India's first Covid-19 victim. He returned from Saudi Arabia on February 29 and was under treatment at Kalaburagi and Hyderabad private hospitals.

Meanwhile, the government announced that all gyms and wellness centres in the state will remain shut till March 31 and dental services in state-run hospitals will also be closed till the month-end.

"All non-essential services to be identified for closure to minimize visit of people," said an official statement here.

The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) hospital on Broadway road in the city centre will be handed over to the state Medical Education Department on Wednesday to host Covid-19 suspects and patients in its isolation ward.

"Infosys Foundation chairperson Sudha Murthy will provide all medical equipment required for the treatment of the infected victims and patients under observation," said the statement.

Meanwhile, the South Western Railway (SWR) increased the platform ticket price 5 times to a whopping Rs 50 from Rs 10 from Wednesday to restrict the public from entering the platforms and prevent large gathering of people in stations.

In a related development, the Radha-Krishna temple of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (Iskon) at Hare Krishna hill in the city's northwest suburb and Vaikuntha hill in the southern suburb will remain shut till further notice to prevent gathering of devotees in large numbers at a time.