K’taka: Covid cases dip, mortality rate a worry

BSY recovers, discharged

Karnataka has started showing a slow decline in the number of Covid-19 positive cases, but the death rate remains a worry. From consistent figures of above 6,000 cases every day, it dipped to 4,267 on Monday. However, the death toll was the highest so far for a single day – 114 – with 36 of them succumbing to the virus in Bengaluru alone.

Bengaluru too saw a dip in numbers with 1243 testing positive Monday.

The total active cases in the state went up to nearly 80,000 even as the overall caseload touched 1,82,354.

Meanwhile, CM BS Yediyurappa was discharged from Manipal Hospital after testing Covid negative. He was admitted on August 2 after testing positive though he was asymptomatic.

In a Covid-related development, a 43-year-old coronavirus patient went missing from Bengaluru’s Kempegowda Institute of Medical Sciences (KIMS) Hospital on Friday evening and the police launched a search. She was admitted to the hospital on July 25 after testing positive for coronavirus.

A case was filed under sections 269 (negligent act likely to spread infection of disease dangerous to life) and 270 (malignant act likely to spread infection of disease dangerous to life) of the IPC.

Hospitals have been facing difficulty in convincing patients to stay in their rooms. But one of the main reasons for patients to flee is the expensive treatment. At KIMS, patients are charged Rs65,000, and the hospital stay can extend up to 15 days. The cost excludes the medicines.