COVID-19 | Several districts in Karnataka see significant decline in cases during lockdown
Experts say drop in cases needs to be sustained in order that one other unfold is prevented
Many districts in Karnataka are seeing a dip in COVID-19 cases during the last 4 weeks. The decline is extra significant in the final two weeks and the week-on-week change is above 80% in 5 districts.
Dakshina Kannada has seen the best decline with a 89.6% week-on-week change adopted by Mandya the place the change is 83.6%. Kodagu and Vijayapura have a week-on-week change of 83% adopted by Shivamogga with 82.2%, in keeping with information from the State COVID-19 battle room.
However, a number of city areas in the districts are nonetheless seeing an increase in cases during the last one month. The prime worst hit cities embrace Humnabad in Bidar district, Boragaon in Belagavi district, Heggada Devana Kote in Mysuru, Chadchan in Vijayapura and Mogalkhod in Belagavi district, information has revealed.
“Although active cases are coming down with more discharges and dip in new cases, some districts still have a long way to go before they can be unlocked completely,” sources mentioned.
Lockdown impact
C.N. Manjunath, nodal officer for labs and testing in the State’s COVID-19 activity drive, attributed the declining pattern to the lockdown. “This is a good sign but it should not make us complacent,” he mentioned.
He asserted that it is rather necessary to maintain this decline and stop one other unfold. “We have to be extra cautious and ensure there is no reverse transmission from the districts to urban areas after the lockdown is lifted. The surge in districts was because people carried the virus from urban areas when they went to their hometowns before the lockdown,” he mentioned.
Pointing out that restrictions on social, political and non secular gatherings ought to mandatorily proceed until December, Dr. Manjunath mentioned: “If this is not done, we may invite the possible third wave much earlier than what is being predicted.”
V. Ravi, member of the State’s Technical Advisory Committee additionally mentioned the decline in cases signifies that the lockdown has labored.
District committees
The TAC has advisable that each district ought to have COVID-19 district technical professional committees to offer technical steerage to the district administration. This relies on the State’s expertise in the primary and second wave, the advice report said.
Elaborating on this, Dr. Ravi mentioned your complete State can’t be locked down we can not lockdown your complete State during every wave. “We worked as a State in the first and second wave. Now, we have realised that each district is a different entity and each district should be considered a State,” mentioned the physician, who can be the nodal officer for genomic affirmation of SARS-CoV-2 in Karnataka.
“This is mainly because COVID-19 spread was largely urban centric till the middle of the second wave. But, it is moving rural now. It is more important to have data collection, analysis and interventions planned at the district level,” he defined.